This article was originally reported in August 2025.
In August 2025, Ohio State University and the Ohio Department of Development recognized the students who completed the 2025 Ohio Export Internship Program (OEIP), a state program that places business students in summer export jobs at small and medium-sized Ohio companies. The ceremony, hosted by the Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) in Ohio State’s Fisher College of Business, was held at the Fawcett Center on the Columbus campus (Ohio State News, August 22, 2025).
The 2025 ceremony
Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel, the former Ohio State football coach, gave the keynote. “If it weren’t for our partnerships with business and industry, there is no way we could continue to grow,” he said, and thanked host companies for “mentoring and giving opportunities for our students to take on responsibility.”
Ohio State recognized six of its students, whose 2025 host companies were Global Recovery Group, Star USA Inc., Stewart Glapat Corp., Tech International, Daavlin and Expeditors International. Kim Roseler, program manager of Ohio State’s National Center for the Middle Market, said companies of this size generate more than $10 trillion in annual revenue and account for about a third of private-sector GDP and employment: “If these middle-market companies became their own separate country, they’d be the fifth largest in the world.”
The six academic partners named by Ohio State were Ohio State, Bowling Green State University, Cleveland State University, Ohio University, the University of Dayton and Youngstown State University.
How the program works
- Who runs it: the Ohio Department of Development, with six partner universities. The program began in 2012 (Ohio University).
- Spring course: selected students first take a three-credit exporting course in the spring semester, for example MGT 2200 at Ohio University and MGMT 3920 Exporting Strategy and Practice at Bowling Green. Students are enrolled automatically after selection. BGSU says the preparation course serves students from more than 18 Ohio universities (BGSU).
- Summer internship: a paid, full-time internship of 12 weeks (40 hours a week at BGSU’s description), running roughly mid-May to mid-August, on export projects for a small or mid-sized Ohio company. Ohio University also offers enrollment in the NASBITE Student Pathway Program toward the Certified Global Business Professional credential.
- Host companies: must pay interns full-time wages as W-2 employees, have an existing or planned export budget, give the intern mostly export-focused projects and managerial guidance, and take part in a program evaluation. For the 2026 cohort, companies could apply through January 2026 (New Albany Company, August 28, 2025).
- Student requirements are set by each campus. Ohio University asks for a 3.0 cumulative GPA, at least sophomore standing, a résumé and an interview, and notes that students need a car for summer commuting. BGSU also requires a 3.0 GPA, the spring course, a full-time summer commitment and an interview with the instructors.
Scale: in 2024, 58 students from six Ohio universities completed OEIP internships (Business Journal Daily, October 7, 2024).
Latest update
As of November 2026 the program is recruiting its next cohort. BGSU’s program page lists the 2027 program with applications closing October 16, and Ohio University’s page lists an October 10 application deadline, so students interested in summer 2027 should check with their campus coordinator now.
What international students should know
- Eligibility: BGSU’s page says the program is open to all BGSU students, “domestic and international.” Other campuses’ pages do not address international students, so ask the coordinator at your school.
- Work authorization: an off-campus summer internship during your degree normally requires Curricular Practical Training (CPT) on your I-20 before you start. In August 2026, SEVP reminded schools that CPT may be approved only when the training is an integral part of the established curriculum, and said an internship tied to an elective course that not every student in the program must take does not qualify (SEVP CPT guidance, August 2026). Because OEIP is a selective, optional program, ask your international student office whether it can be authorized as CPT at your school before you apply.
- Rankings: Ohio State ranks No. 44 among national universities in the 2027 U.S. News rankings, Ohio University No. 202 and Bowling Green No. 276 (Forward Pathway rankings).
References
- Ohio State News: Ohio State students gain work experience in global export industry (August 22, 2025)
- Ohio University College of Business: Ohio Export Internship Program
- BGSU Schmidthorst College of Business: Ohio Export Internship Program
- New Albany Company: Companies can apply now for ’26 Export Internship (August 28, 2025)
- Business Journal Daily: Ohio Export Internship Program Empowers Future Business Leaders (October 7, 2024)
- SEVP Broadcast Message 2608-02: Guidance for DSOs regarding CPT (August 24, 2026)
- Forward Pathway: Ohio State University