Because social science majors forge their own career paths.
Because you’ve got what New York needs.
Because our democracy needs your voice for a stronger future.
Defining the college experience is the opportunity to attend interesting and rewarding courses, participate in invigorating extracurricular activities, and expand your network, but you don’t have to stop there. Beyond the college campus is a plethora of professional development opportunities that will propel your career into new heights, so seize the moment!
Colin Powell School students are eligible for a bank of 300 paid internship hours (@$18/hour = $5,400), which can be completed at any time for up to a year after you graduate. Access your bank by creating a resume with one of our Coaches, and learn by doing while getting paid!
Eligibility
Qualifications
Benefits
In an internship and looking for support? Got an offer for an unpaid internship or one that is paid less than $18/hour? Meet with me!
Not sure where to start? Need help brushing up your resume, LinkedIn, cover letter, or interview prep? Then set up an appointment with me or find me in the office for support!
About Me: I’m currently a junior pursuing a BA/MA degree in Economics with a minor in Psychology so I know what it feels like to be lost when it comes to resumes, cover letters, and interviews, so please feel free to ask for help!
First time building a resume? Preparing for an interview? Meet with me and unlock the mysteries! Languages: Proficient in English and Bengali (Bangla); basic comprehension in Hindi and Urdu
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
An internship is similar to a job in a professional organization, with responsibilities to complete projects toward fulfilling its goals or mission. Organizations that host interns are willing to provide on-the-job training for their projects, and dedicate a supervisor to support your learning. Internship opportunities are shared out just like jobs, and you usually apply to and interview for them the same way you would a job.
The primary differences between a job and an internship is that organizations understand that interns are not bringing full expertise to the project and provide training and guidance in order to complete it, and that interns are paid a “stipend” instead of a salary usually in one or two lump sums.
Internship:
Job
As of July 1st, 2023, students who participate in the Career Fellows program must meet the following eligibility requirements:
Please refer to the flyer above or to the Student Infosheet.
NOTE for Spring 2023 Research Assistance Internship Program Participants: If you participated in the Research Assistance (RA) Internship Program, and you want to receive funding or a funded internship through the Career Fellows program, your 45 hours served under the RA Internship Program will be deducted from your total 300 eligible hours. Thus, RA Program participants are eligible for up to 255 hours.
Our internships have a large range of availability, so students and sites can set the schedule together! The Paid Internship Program does not have a hour minimum, but does have a maximum of 300 hours.
Alumni may access an internship for up to 12 months after their graduation date.
Students are paid via a stipend. The stipends are typically distributed in two batches; the first stipend arrives near the midpoint of the internship and the second stipend at the end of the internship. The students will receive a physical check that they must pick up unless alternate arrangements are made.
Anytime! Our offices, and most of our internships, are available at any time of the year and are not tied to the school schedule.
While some of our internships have set start and end dates, most of our internships are flexible with how long they are, and when students can start and end. We do not set mandatory minimums or length times; it all depends on the intern and the internship site.
You can access your bank of hours for up to 12 months after you graduate.
With your bank of 300 hours, you can decide to do one, two, or more internships!
If you are exploring your field, it will make sense to do a couple of internships. If you already know what you want to do and just need to gain experience, go for the full 300 hours in one internship!
Yes! Professor Garri Rivkin teaches Public Affairs Seminar SSC 31117 every semester on Mondays from 6 PM - 8:30 PM or asynchronously to accommodate students' schedules. Check out the class' flyer here. If you have any other questions, feel free to email him at grivkin@thecitytutors.org.
Transportation costs, like Metrocard purchases, are not offered as the cost of public transportation was built into the hourly stipend amount.
Nope! All internships have their own time requirements, but most understand that students are in school and have other life commitments and won’t require more than 20 hours a week. We have a range of micro to macro internships with many different levels of commitment!
You and the site will set the hours and the schedule at the beginning of the internship. You are expected to honor the commitment, or talk with your site supervisor if things change and you need to adjust the schedule.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Visit our Internships Database to view all open positions.
Additionally, you can also visit the CPDI website to view other available opportunities.
If you don’t feel ready for an internship but want to get started, volunteering is actually a great first step.
Learn more here: Ways to Volunteer to Gain Professional Experience
For more information on internships and our professional development workshops, email Internships Program Manager, Ivy Allotey iallotey@ccny.cuny.edu.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Students receiving a stipend are optionally invited to attend our Internship Insiders workshop series offered every first and third Tuesday to discuss goals and progress.
We require students to complete a brief midpoint and endpoint survey.
That's it!
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Internships must have a dedicated supervisor who sets and tracks learning goals with the student. Please see our Site Partner Overview.
We welcome site partners from all sectors, and there are no MOUs, contracts, or tax implications.
We are especially happy to partner with alumni!
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Yes! If your internship is unpaid or paid less than $18/hour, this program may cover the difference. We welcome new intern partners! Under these circumstances, you will be considered a Got it? Get it! Applicant. Please first attend an orientation (flyer above with dates).
There are two differences between volunteering and interning with an organization:
Here is an example: Volunteer Vince is helping out at a food pantry. He unboxes cans of food and puts them on a shelf. Intern Iris is at the same food pantry. Their major is communications, and they are working with the Marketing Director to draw up a social media communication schedule and conducting research on best practices for graphics. Both students are helping this organization reach its goal to feed hungry people, but one is a career development opportunity, and one is not.
See the difference?
If you don’t feel ready for an internship but want to get started, volunteering is actually a great first step. Sometimes, students begin volunteering and then convert it into an internship.
Learn more by reaching out to our Internships Program Manager, Ivy Allotey: iallotey@ccny.cuny.edu.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Yes! Is important to maintain a cordial and grateful attitude when exploring internship opportunities. Even if you didn't get the position, you may have learned something new about your career or professional interests! Not sure how to write a thank you note? Check out the Student Checklist for an outline. Please send a thank you note to all your interviewers 24 - 48 hours after the interview.
Congratulations! As soon as you have negotiated the hours, schedule, and learning goals for the internship, complete the stipend application form (link available here). Submitting this will send an internship confirmation form to the site supervisor you name on the application. When both forms have been processed, you and the site supervisor will receive a stipend confirmation email.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Internship hours are not tracked like jobs on an exact hour-for-hour basis, it is more like a contract, in which you and the site determine at the beginning the total number of hours you will complete and intended schedule within which you will complete them. The end date can be extended if it takes longer than expected.
It is important that you track your hours closely, so that at any given time both you and the site know how many hours have been completed and how many hours are still remaining.
Students can choose how they would like to track their hours (e.g. excel sheet, document, handwritten, the optional Timesheet + Journal form created by the Career Service Hub, weekly, monthly, etc.). Moreover, students and supervisors can establish a timekeeping system.
However, regardless of the system students use, only the dates recorded on the midpoint and endpoint surveys are used by staff as reference for the students' total hours.
Take note of the midpoint and endpoint dates that are listed in the internship confirmation email. You will receive an email from Career Coach Ikenna to pick up a midpoint and endpoint check at about the same time (and you must complete a midpoint and endpoint survey to claim it). Do not make an appointment to pick up the check; you will receive an email with a link to set up an appointment. Please review the Student Checklist for details as to how to calculate your checks' estimated arrival dates.
You must sign your W9, not print your name. To avoid delaying when your stipend is turned in, then please follow these instructions to make sure your signature is approved:
An example of printing versus signing your name has been shown below.
Signatures must be digital.
Checks go through processing for more than a month.
After students have submitted the Paid Internships Program Stipend Request Form, supervisors have completed the Colin Powell School Fellows Paid Internships Program Site Form, and all the documentation has been cleared (some students may be asked to re-submit their W9 so we urge you to fill it correctly the first time), the Internships Program Associate submits this information to the finance team for processing. Students and supervisors will receive confirmation of this in an automated email with the subject: "Internship Stipend Confirmed!"
Checks take up to 7 weeks from two separate dates:
1. The day students and supervisors receive the "Internship Stipend Confirmed!" email (NOT the midpoint)
2. The endpoint date
Staff in the Public Service Career Hub are not privy to the internal finance processing timeline once they hand in student information.
At the end of the processing timeline, students' checks unfortunately, do not arrive on the midpoint or endpoint dates. Rather, you can expect checks around 2 - 4 weeks after the following dates:
First Check
1. Date student and supervisor receive "Internship Stipend Confirmed!" Email
Second Check
2. Endpoint Date
If your second or first check does not arrive up to 4 weeks (please be mindful of business days) after these dates, your check is officially considered delayed and you can reach out to the IPA to push for status updates on your check. Check out the Student Checklist to get a sense of the program’s process.
Additionally, to keep this in mind, the finance team has been experiencing some delays with check processing over the summer months. We understand that students are frustrated and dealing with difficult realities (e.g. having to pay rent, food, caring for loved ones). We ask that you bear with us.
We are sorry for this uncertainty and for the lengthiness of this process.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.
Yes, the stipend is taxable. If you have a social security number (SSN), you will receive a tax form from the college by January 31st, 2024 to include in your taxes if you file. Taxes are only deducted up front if the tax form you use is a W8 BEN, which is for people who don’t have a social security card. The same amount of taxes are applied to people with or without a SSN, the only difference is timing.
Now that you have a resume and some professional experience, you are ready for the next step! Consider applying to a Colin Powell School Fellowship, and visit the Career and Professional Development Institute, which has all the resources you need to bridge your college experience to a purposeful career.
If you have done well in your internship, your site supervisor can be a reference for another internship, a fellowship, a job, or any other professional opportunity you apply for!
As of July 1st, 2023, we no longer extend internship hours. The intention behind the policy is to give access to the paid internship hours to as many students as possible with the limited budget that we have. We’re here for you to make the most of the hours that you have, and look into other opportunities once you have completed this one.
No. W-2s are typically associated with payroll for salary payments with tax deductions. Stipends, on the other hand, are not considered part of regular payroll. For stipend recipients, a 1099 tax form will be provided by a third-party agent, and these forms should be mailed out to all eligible students by the end of January.
No! The Public Service Career Hub offers a variety of services and programing, such as our Internship Insider workshop series, resume and cover letter coaching, career development and job searching assistance, and more!
Copyright © 2022 Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. All rights reserved.