3.18.2011

Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation awards 20 paid summer internships across NC. Please click here for more information.

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The Host Application Deadline has been extended to December 16, 2011.

The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation believes that it is important for college students to have summer internships in the nonprofit sector in order to provide a pathway to future employment in the sector and to increase the training ground for the next generation of nonprofit leaders.  The universality of unpaid internships in the non-profit sector creates a barrier for low-income students, who are disproportionately students of color.  Because of the inequitable access to internships, these students are less able to explore potential careers in the non-profit sector.  Even if they do, they are less competitive than fellow applicants who can demonstrate experience in the sector.  According to a recent report published by the Economic Policy Institute:

Internships are no longer a rare added bonus for students, but now a standard component of the college experience.  A national survey in 2006 found that 84 percent of college students at four-year institutions had completed at least one internship before graduation. […] In an increasingly competitive labor market, internships also provide important and often necessary credentials for prospective job applicants. In spite of their value, the opportunity to pursue an internship is often limited by a student’s socioeconomic status. The vast majority of non-profit and governmental internships are unpaid. For a student of modest means, this price tag—having to meet living expenses without an income—is often too great, particularly since some of the most prestigious unpaid internships are located in expensive cities.

Internship Eligibility

Through the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation’s Nonprofit Internship Program twenty low-income students will be awarded paid summer internships at ZSR-grantee organizations. Eligible students must be 1) a full-time, enrolled student in a four-year college or university, 2) a resident of North Carolina or attending an institute of higher education in the state, 3) receiving a Pell grant during the academic year in which they submit the application.  Interested students who are ineligible for a Pell grant but face financial hardship should contact the Foundation. 

Organization Responsibility

Hosting nonprofits must 1) have been awarded a ZSR grant in the last four years, 2) pay the intern $800 (one third of the overall stipend), and 3) provide ZSR with a work plan that ensures a rewarding experience, substantive opportunities, and adequate supervision for at least eight weeks.  ZSR will pay two-thirds (or $1,600) of the stipend of the first twenty matches made (organizations offer an internship which the applicant accepts) with a maximum of one intern per organization.

Application Process

Applications from host organizations must be received no later than Friday, December 16th.

Timeline

December 16 - Applications due from host organizations

December 19th – February 15st - Intern applications available to students

March1st - Applications are passed on to host organizations

March 2nd - March 26th - Organizations match with interns

March 27th - Interns know placement

June - Internship begins