Dear Students,
Out of sight does not mean out of mind — we think of you all constantly and hope you are staying healthy, safe, and positive.
I promised you another update on internships after my communication of March 28. While we had hoped to have decisions this week about College-wide policies on summer programs which will have an impact on CCI internship funding, we do not have that information yet. We now anticipate hearing about these new guidelines around April 15. This message will give you CCI’s current “best guess” of what we will be able to offer for internship funding, with more information coming next week.
We know that many of your internships are being cancelled by the employers or that you are on a “wait and see” status. Given the current COVID-19 situation and projections of when we will return to any sense of normalcy, we anticipate that the College may determine that only remote experiences — with some exceptions — be sponsored by the College this summer. Please see below for how this impacts internship funding:
- If CCI can only offer funding for remote unpaid internships this summer, then all applications for funding must include a plan approved by your supervisor for working remotely. (In most cases, expenses would be for lost summer wages.) Contact your supervisor and discuss this provision. Include a description in your funding essay. If remote work is not possible, explain the situation and any alternative plans.
- We anticipate that there may be a few exceptions granted if the internship starts later in the summer, in a geography that has been relatively unaffected, and is not with a vulnerable population. These reviews would follow guidelines put forth by the US State Department and the CDC and final decisions on these opportunities would likely be made in June.
- While funding remains competitive, CCI’s goal is to fund as many students as possible and help create a summer of possibility under such trying circumstances. Therefore, we are broadening our definition of funding-eligible experiences. In addition to remote internships and experiences, we will fund volunteer opportunities, third-party provided virtual internships (e.g. CEA), and will consider other experiential opportunities that help students develop professional skills and advance career exploration. As stated before, we anticipate that all must be done remotely.
- CCI has also relaxed its criteria for length of internships/experiences. Instead of requiring 8 weeks at 30 hours a week for $3000 grants and 4 weeks at 25 hours a week for 1st Year Explore Grants, we will now consider funding experiential opportunities that are of varying length. Funding allocations for approved applications will be pro-rated based on established ranges of total number of hours, with maximum awards of $3000. Students who are partially funded will still be eligible for funding next summer (excluding Feb and May 2021 grads).
- CCI will now offer two deadlines for funding applications: April 13 for students who have confirmed internships, and May 8 for students who need more time to finalize plans.
- Submit an application and make your case for your experience…See applications for funding and directions, forms, and FAQs at go.middlebury.edu/summerfunding.
- If you are still looking for a remote experience, here are a few resources on remote internships to get you started.
- And finally, it is fine for you to NOT participate in an internship this summer. For those who would like other ideas for the summer, see Ideas for an Impactful Summer.
We hope to provide a more definitive set of guidelines for you next week related to CCI’s internship funding. In the meantime, please keep your internship funding applications coming in. Thank you for your patience and please be in touch if we can help or talk through any situations. Remember, CCI advisors are available for Zoom and phone appointments – schedule appointments through Handshake. Feel free to also email internships@middlebury.edu with any questions.
Take good care. CCI is here to support you in any way we can.