Public Service Center Grants

resources

Fellowships and
Internships

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Announcements

  • Looking for a project idea? Community partners often suggest projects or challenges to us that could be developed into Fellowships or Internships. Check-out the current ideas on the PSC "opportunities" page.
  • The deadline to apply for IAP Fellowships and Internships is noon on Friday, October 23rd!
  • Applications for semester-time Fellowships and Internships can be submitted at any time.

The Fellowships and Internships programs both support MIT students working on capacity-building service projects around the world. Fellows and Interns work with community-focused organizations such as non-profits, government offices, international aid agencies, schools, grassroots groups, student-initiated service enterprises and even for-profit businesses if the business is using a social-entrepreneurship model to address the needs of an under-served community. Students in these programs receive a stipend for their work, which typically goes towards living and travel expenses.

Note: we also have a grants program that provides funding for materials necessary to develop and implement service projects. If your primary need is for materials funding, rather than living and travel expenses, go to the grants program pages.

So, what is the difference between a Fellowship and an Internship?

Public Service Fellowships

Public Service Fellows play a leading role in developing and implementing their service projects. Fellows must work in collaboration with a supervisor in a community organization that will benefit from their work in the long term but Fellows typically take a consultant or partnership role with their supervisors, rather than working directly for them. MIT students who are developing their own non-profits or social enterprises may also apply for Fellowships to support them in this process.
To get a feel  for the sort of work the Fellowships program supports, check-out the stories at http://web.mit.edu/mitpsc/resources/fellowships/inspired/index.html and the videos of students talking about their projects at http://techtv.mit.edu/collections/publicservicecenter/videos (the students sitting in front of a world map were all Fellows except for Yi Wang.)

Paul and Priscilla Gray Internships

Paul and Priscilla Gray Interns work within community organizations and will typically receive considerable direction from their supervisors. Paul and Priscilla Gray Internships are intended to help MIT students to explore public service career possibilities and/or to gain experience for developing intensive service projects in the future.
Sometimes, organizations take on interns to assist them with their general operations. In these circumstances, we expect students to also explore and develop personal projects that make good use of their skills and knowledge to add value to the organization and/or the community they are serving. In other cases, organizations ask interns to help them develop their operations, expand their services, or assess their effectiveness. Projects of this type are a great fit for the Paul and Priscilla Gray Internships program!

How to apply

MIT students can request support and funding for Fellowships or Internships over the summer, IAP, or during the semester.

Applicants to both programs can suggest projects tackling any issue faced by underserved communities around the world. However, if you are planning an international project, check the MIT travel policy and travel warnings at http://informit.mit.edu/epr/3.0travel.html

MIT students can develop Fellowship and Internship projects in a variety of ways. You can work on a project by yourself or with a small group of friends (the usual team size is 2 or 3). You can create your own project, continue a project you started in a class or as a volunteer, find a project through an established service internship program, or get inspiration from the ideas submitted to us by our community partners around the world.

Once you have a good outline of your project plan, use the information on this page to decide whether it is a better fit for the Fellowship or Internship program. Use the internal navigation at the top of this page to access the application materials for the two programs and more information to help you with your application.

However you initiate your project, you will need to contact someone in the community or organization you plan to serve and collaborate with them to produce a detailed project proposal.  Your community partner must understand that you have a commitment to use your skills, experience, and passions to contribute substantially to their work by developing a capacity-building project. You will need to submit a letter of support from your community partner as part of your application to the Fellowships or Internships program. You will also need a letter of recommendation from an MIT faculty or staff member.

If you would help developing your Fellowship or Internship ideas or feedback on a draft of your application, let us know. The earlier you contact us before the application deadline, the better. Contact Alison Hynd at hynd@mit.edu