Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program: Students

There are a few steps to complete before submitting an application: 

1. Attend the prerequisite workshop: Funded Internship Programs 101 
   • Look for an upcoming workshop

2. Secure an unpaid, nonprofit internship 
   • Find eligible opportunities on Handshake 
   • Many nonprofits don’t have formal internship programs, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t welcome your help. If you find a mission-driven organization you care about, reach out with a brief email introducing yourself, sharing your interest in their work, and proposing ways you could contribute through a short-term internship. Attach your resume and suggest a time to talk. 
3. Determine the stipend amount (and minimum internship hours) to apply for 
4. Share the Employer Internship Confirmation Form with your supervisor 
5. Secure a letter of recommendation from a BU faculty or staff member 
6. Update your resume 
7. Prepare your answers to the short essay questions required as part of your application 

For detailed instructions on these steps, refer to the Yawkey Program: Application page. 

• Sign and submit the Award Agreement form 
• Attend the internship preparation workshop 
• Receive your first stipend payment 

• Start of Internship: 
  • Look for an email from your CCD mentor introducing themselves and outlining your program dates and deadlines 
  • Meet with your supervisor at the start of your internship to discuss your learning agreement (goals, objectives, action plan), how you will be supervised during the internship (frequency, methods, etc.), and how your work will be evaluated 
• First Two Weeks: Submit your learning agreement during the first two weeks of your internship 
• Midpoint: Meet with your CCD mentor at the midpoint of your internship 

• Complete a post-internship evaluation of the experience, the organization, and your progress toward identified learning objectives 
• Write a 3–5 page essay reflecting on your internship experience and its impact on your academic and career development. View essay instructions 
• Submit an in-action photo with a caption 
• Receive the final stipend payment once all final requirements are submitted 
• Share your internship experience with other BU students 

Student eligibility is based on the following criteria: 

• Class Standing: Sophomore, junior, and first-semester seniors during a fall or spring semester internship; freshmen, sophomore, junior standing during the preceding spring semester for a summer internship 
• GPA: 2.0 minimum 
• Prerequisite Workshop Attendance: Funded Internship Programs 101 (check the calendar for the next available sessions); both session attendance and quiz are required for the recorded version 
• Internship: Qualified, unpaid internship at a nonprofit organization 
• No Prior Participation: No previous participation or receipt of funding from the Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program 
• Full-Time Enrollment: Full-time undergraduate students at BU. For fall or spring semester internships, participants must be enrolled full time that semester. For summer internships, participants must be enrolled full time for both the preceding spring and the following fall semesters 
• Good Standing: Good disciplinary and academic standing during program participation. We reserve the right to rescind or seek repayment of the stipend if a student fails to maintain good disciplinary standing during their program participation 
• Community Service: Demonstrated commitment to community service is preferred, but not required 

International students who meet program requirements are welcome to apply. 

Any selected student with an internship outside the United States must ensure that they have appropriate visa or employment authorization for the country where the internship is located. 

A qualified internship must: 

• Unpaid: This position cannot receive any financial compensation from employer, no matter how small 
• Hours: Meet the minimum hours of the chosen stipend tier 
• Supervision: Be supervised by a full-time employee, who is not a member of the intern’s family or currently enrolled as a student 
• Modality: Be in-person, remote, or hybrid 
• Organization Type: Be at a nonprofit organization, which must have official status in the state in which it operates, or equivalent if outside the United States 
• Organization Mission: Further, the nonprofit must be organized around a cause, mission, or community need and may only pursue purposes permitted by federal and state statutes for nonprofit organizations. The organization’s mission must be aligned with one of six broad areas, the Yawkey Areas of Giving 

A qualified internship must NOT: 

• Be owned or operated by a student or member of the applicant’s family and cannot be affiliated with BU. For example, since Boston Medical Center is a BU-affiliated teaching hospital, it is not an eligible internship site 
• Be secured by paying a fee to any third party, including an individual or organization, for placement or participation. Additionally, internships that require fundraising in advance of participation are not eligible for funding 
• Be with a local, state, or federal government office, including with a local, state, or federal representative 

If you have any questions about eligibility for you or your internship, please contact us at yawkey@bu.edu. 

Students may apply for a stipend of $4,500 for 300 hours in the Summer, and a stipend of $2,250 for 150 hours in the Fall or Spring.

Stipends will be paid to Yawkey Interns by the University during their program participation and through a distribution schedule that will be shared via email to participants. Most of the stipend will be disbursed at the start of a student’s participation in the Yawkey Program. If you have questions about the distribution schedule of the stipends, please contact yawkey@bu.edu. 

Living allowance stipends are intended to defray living expenses and enable students to accept internships with nonprofit organizations, which are often unpaid. In no instance is a living allowance stipend a payment involving services as it relates to work, and it is not compensation for any work carried out during or in conjunction with the internship. 

A living allowance stipend is not subject to withholdings by the University. However, the IRS may consider a living allowance stipend to be taxable income to the recipient student. It is the recipient student’s responsibility to report this income accurately and make payments on any taxable portion of the award. 

Federal regulations and Boston University policy require that all student resources—including stipends such as those from the Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program, which are intended to assist with living expenses—be taken into consideration when calculating a student’s eligibility for need-based financial aid. As a result, if a student’s financial aid award includes federal or BU need-based aid, the combination of all need-based aid, merit awards, and Yawkey stipends cannot exceed the student’s calculated financial aid eligibility. Yawkey funding for summer internships will not affect academic year awards but may affect summer awards. 

If an adjustment to a need-based financial aid package is required as a result of including a Yawkey stipend in the package, the loan and employment portion of the award is reduced first, before scholarships or grants. Federal Work-Study and need-based student loans (such as the Direct Federal Stafford Loan) are either reduced or canceled before scholarships or grants are affected. Scholarship/grant aid is reduced only if necessary to avoid aid in excess of calculated financial eligibility. Assistance from all sources (need-, merit-, or credit-based) cannot exceed a student’s total cost of attendance. 

When applying, students are encouraged to contact yawkey@bu.edu with any questions about the potential effect of the stipend on their aid package.