Learn By Doing
At SUNY Oneonta, experiential or “applied” learning isn’t just a buzzword; hands-on opportunities to engage in practical experiences are built into all our majors and programs. From internships and research to study abroad programs and faculty-led trips, you’ll be encouraged to apply your knowledge in real-world contexts. Because you’ll be learning by doing, you’ll graduate with the skills, experience, confidence and connections needed to succeed in your chosen career.
Internships
Explore careers and get resume-worthy experience through internships, which are a requirement for many majors. You can land an internship in your field in New York City, Washington, D.C., Albany or Los Angeles – or right in the Oneonta area through our many partnerships with local businesses and nonprofit organizations.
Student Internship Story
Biochemistry major Marie Box talks about her internship a local small business, Vêsucré, which makes vegan, plant-based, gluten-free frozen desserts.
Research
Pursue your own independent research or join a faculty research lab and work side by side with your professor and other students to study a specialized topic. You can also conduct research in an immersive setting, such as the Archaeology Field School offered every other summer. Each spring, students present their work to the campus at our Student Research and Creative Activity showcase.
Travel
The world is your classroom! Our Office of Global Education will connect you with a wide range of summer, semester-long or full-year study abroad programs. We also offer short, faculty-led programs (FLPs) across the United States and abroad, such as a popular annual FLP to Guatemala to study water resource issues in the developing world.
Service
Oneonta students volunteer more than 45,000 hours each year through the Center for Volunteerism and Community Engagement. Sororities and fraternities, athletes and civic-minded student clubs provide additional opportunities to give back. Some are right on campus – including our student-operated volunteer EMS squad, OSES, which responds to campus emergency medical calls and hosts classes on CPR, bleeding control and how to handle emergencies.
Student Clubs
You can develop real-world skills and experience – and make friends who share your interests – by joining a student club related to your major. WIRE-TV, WONY radio, the Mask Hammer theatre club, the Student Fashion Society, the Music Industry Club and the Entrepreneurship Club are just a few examples.
Experiential Learning Center
Located on the main floor of the Hunt Union, the Experiential Learning Center is where you can get connected to hands-on learning opportunities that will prepare you for success in whatever field you choose.
- The Career Planning and Networking Center can help you find and land an internship in your field of study, and provide advice on career planning, resume writing and job interview preparation.
- The Office of Global Education can connect you with opportunities ranging from 10-day faculty-led trips to full-year study abroad programs.
- The Student Research and Creative Activity coordinator can help you apply for grants to support research projects conducted on your own or in collaboration with faculty.
- The Center for Volunteerism and Community Engagement can connect you with volunteer and service-learning opportunities in the Oneonta area and beyond.
- The Office of Sustainability can help you make a difference in our environment and world through internships, service-learning experiences, and volunteer opportunities such as our Red Closet Thrift Shop.
Financial Support
We are committed providing you with the financial resources needed to support your experiential learning, including:
- $381,585 in student internship grants awarded in 2024-25
- more than $120,000 annually in grants to support student research and travel to professional conferences; and
- 23 different scholarships for students who study abroad or participate in faculty-led trips to the National Association of Music Merchants trade show in Los Angeles, Model UN competition in New York City, and more!
Alumni Network
Our strong alumni network helps students find and land jobs. Each year, successful alumni return to campus to speak to classes and share their career experience and advice.
- Through our Campus to Careers programs, students interested in theatre, business, music industry and political science travel to New York City or Washington, D.C., to network with successful alumni at their places of business.
- Some academic departments, such as Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, also invite alumni back to campus each year for special networking events with students interested in similar careers.
