Non Profit Internship and Fellowship Programs

Just like the for-profit world, many nonprofit organizations and agencies offer internship and fellowship programs to help garner interest in their work.

Internships and fellowships are different from nonprofit jobs because they occur over a set amount of time, and often have extra support and activities associated with them, like professional development events.

Internships with nonprofits are perfect for students in college or just out of college, as well as for those who are looking for a mid-career change. Because of budget issues, many nonprofit organizations offer unpaid internships either throughout the school year, or during the summer. However, there are also a number of paid opportunities. The following are some examples of paid internships with nonprofit organizations:

Institute for International Education – If you are a student interested in International development, you should definitely check out the Institute for International Education. In addition to coordinating the prestigious Fulbright Scholarship, the IIE also offers programs in Science and Technology in developing countries.

Shell Nonprofit Internship Program – Shell works with local Houston environmental nonprofit organizations to offer paid nonprofit internships to college students. Each nonprofit organization is awarded $2,500 to hire a talented student to work with the organization, learn about its activities and perform service to the environment. The website lists all of the participating organizations in Houston where Shell internships are available.

The Studio Museum in Harlem – The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York combines education and the arts with its paid summer internship program. They offer a stipend of $1,600 for both semester and summer internships. Interns can work either in the curatorial, development or director’s offices as part of their nonprofit internship experience.

Nonprofit fellowships are different from internships in that they are geared towards graduate students and professionals. Here is are some example of nonprofit fellowships opportunities:

Education Pioneers – Education Pioneers works with graduate students in business, law and public policy who are committed to urban education reform. They place talented individuals in charter schools, foundations and school districts in metropolitan areas to serve as consultants on projects around changing the way that we approach education our urban youth. This paid nonprofit internship offers $7,000 for the summer.

Echoing Green – The Echoing Green Public Service Fellowship is a unique leadership opportunity for young professionals or recent graduates with an innovative approach to a social problem. Rewarding social entrepreneurship, Echoing Green provides start-up grants for people looking to get their ideas off the ground. They also offer ongoing support for organizations in their start-up phase.

The Samuel Huntington Public Service Award – The Samuel Huntington Public Service Award is a unique fellowship opportunity for graduating seniors to serve for one year at any public service organization abroad. The award of $10,000 offsets the costs of travel and living abroad.

These are just examples of the types of opportunities in paid internships and fellowships that you can find if you are interested in joining the nonprofit workforce. Idealist.org and college career services offices are great places to find more information about nonprofit job opportunities.