Eagle Intern Fellowship

Important — Before you begin

1. To be eligible for an Eagle Intern Fellowship, you must be receiving financial aid from Boston College. (If you have questions about your financial aid status, please visit the Financial Aid office page to view the options for getting your questions answered.
2. You must secure an unpaid internship offer prior to applying to the Eagle Intern Fellowship.
   
3. Review the eligibility requirements to ensure you are eligible to apply and that your internship qualifies for funding.
4. You may only apply to one deadline. Summer deadlines are February 26, March 25 and April 29
5. No late submissions will be accepted.

Submit a complete application

To apply, you will need to submit the following items:

1. Online application and essay questions.
2. Letter of recommendation - strongly recommended but not required.
3. EIF Supervisor Verification Form (your internship supervisor must complete this form online).
4. Resume.
   

Dates

• Application for Summer Fellowship opens: Thursday, February 1, 2024.
  
• To accommodate students who receive their internship offers at different times, there are three separate deadlines - February 26, March 25 and April 29.
  

Below are the eligibility requirements for the 2024 Eagle Intern Fellowship. Please review in full prior to applying. For questions, contact the Career Center via email at career.center@veosonica.com.

Student Eligibility

• Students must be identified by the BC Financial Aid office as having "financial need" (Low, Medium, or High).
  • If you have questions about your financial aid status, please visit the Contact page for the Financial Aid office to view the options for getting your questions answered
• Open to undergraduates in good academic standing with the university.
• You must be matriculated in both the spring semester before and fall semester after the summer internship (seniors graduating in May 2024 are ineligible for summer 2024 EIF grants). Students studying abroad are considered actively enrolled.
• If you are looking to extend your funding past the season you originally applied for, this may be possible, if funds are available. Please contact Peter Hunt, peter.hunt@veosonica.com, to have a discussion about your situation.
  
• Students may only submit one application to one summer deadline for consideration.
• Students who have previously been awarded the Eagle Intern Fellowship from the Career Center ARE eligible to apply for a second stipend. However, priority will be given to students who have not received an EIF grant in the past.
• If you are receiving more than $500 from Boston College for your internship, you are not eligible to receive an EIF grant.
• If selected for the program, you will be required to complete any and all requirements for the Eagle Intern Fellowship Program which may include:
  • Attend a one-on-one pre-internship meeting with your career coach to discuss how to make the most of your internship
  • Complete mandatory check-ins with your career coach during your internship
• • Present about your experience to the Boston College community
  • Complete a pre- and post-internship survey

Internship Eligibility

• Available to qualifying students working unpaid internships for a minimum 100 hours.
  • Note: If you are unable to complete what is required of you, it is your responsibility to immediately notify the Program Coordinator in the Career Center via email (career.center@veosonica.com). Please Note: Failure to complete all requirements will negatively affect your compensation and will result in discontinuation of your disbursement until such missing requirements are complete. In addition, you will lose Career Center privileges such as access to your Handshake account. Please remember the BC values and ideals that have been instilled in you.
• Only off-campus internships are eligible for Eagle Intern Fellowship funding. On-campus internships with Boston College faculty or staff do not qualify.
• Internships must be unpaid. However, you may receive from your internship organization up to  $1000 for the summer in total compensation, including, but not limited to, monetary, transportation, food, gas, and housing and still be eligible to apply.
  • Note: This does not restrict students from pursuing other paid work experiences to supplement their living expenses over the summer beyond their internship.
• To ensure this is a meaningful experience, the internship must include established learning goals and supervision from an organization’s staff member on site. This should be demonstrated on your offer letter from your internship organization; see the sample offer letters here.
• Remote or hybrid internships are eligible. All internships must still conform to the requirement that students work at least 100 hours for internships.
  
• Internships at student-run start-ups and companies will not be considered.
• A member of the applicant’s family cannot run or have a substantial management interest in the host organization nor serve as the applicant’s supervisor directly or indirectly.
• If you’ve previously worked at the same site for which you are currently applying for funding, you must clearly explain how the responsibilities of this new internship position are significantly different from your previous position. Funding will not be granted for an internship that you have already done.
• Pay-to-participate international or domestic internship programs coordinated through third-party vendors will not be eligible for funding (programs in which you pay a fee to complete an internship).
• The internship must be unpaid and in compliance with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Fact Sheet #71: Internship Programs Under The Fair Labor Standards Act.

Who is eligible to apply?

• Open to all rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors (graduating in 2027, 2026, 2025, or December 2024) who have been identified by the BC Financial Aid office as having "financial need".
  
• Students must be in good academic standing with the university and must be matriculated in both the spring semester before and fall semester after the internship (seniors graduating in May 2024 are ineligible).
• Students studying abroad are considered actively enrolled.

What is the difference between Deadline 1, Deadline 2, and Deadline 3?

Deadline 1 provides an opportunity for students to potentially secure funding for their unpaid internship if they obtain their internship early on in the spring semester. If you apply and are not awarded the fellowship in the Deadline 1 process, you cannot re-apply to another deadline process. Applicants who do not submit complete applications (e.g. missing a resume, etc.) by Deadline 1 will be automatically folded into the Deadline 2 applicant pool, so long as they submit all outstanding documents.

Can I apply to more than one deadline?

No, you can only apply to one deadline.

How are applications scored?

Students will be screened and chosen to receive the fellowship based upon the following criteria:

• Strength and quality of responses to application questions
• Strength and quality of resume
• Strength and quality of EIF supervisor verification form from hiring organization detailing supervisor's name and learning goals, responsibilities, timeline of experience, number of hours
• While a letter of recommendation is not required, a strong letter of recommendation can add important information about your qualities and your accomplishments. We strongly recommend you submit a letter of recommendation from a BC faculty member, staff member, or former/current work supervisor

How much funding will I receive?

The amount of funding depends upon the level of financial need as determined by the Office of Financial Aid and the total hours of the internship. See the Overview section above for details.

Can I Receive More Than One EIF Fellowship?

• Yes, if you have already received an EIF fellowship, you can apply for another. However, priority will be given to students who have not previously received an EIF fellowship. In addition, grants are available only until funding runs out for that year.
• If you’ve previously worked at the same site for which you are currently applying for funding, your supervisor must clearly explain how the responsibilities of this new internship position are significantly different from your previous position.
• What if I am not awarded the Eagle Intern Fellowship? Are there still options to secure funding?
  

Yes, but they will not be through the Career Center. There are several ways to proceed.

• Research summer opportunities offered by different offices across campus that offer forms of unpaid internship funding:
  • Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics Student Grants
  • Clough Center for the Study of Constitutional Democracy Civic Internship Grants
  • African and African Diaspora Studies Amanda V. Houston Traveling Fellowship
  • The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Internship Grant for Unpaid Internships
  • Institute for the Liberal Arts Council for Women at Boston College Colloquium Fellowship
• Research external funding opportunities at scholarship repositories like FastWeb and Unigo. Connect with academic departments, faculty, student organization, and your professional network to explore alternative funding sources.
• Montserrat students may want to contact the Montserrat Coalition about Frontier Fellowships
  

What if I don't have an internship secured by the deadline?

We do not accept partial or late applications. While we would love to extend the deadline even further, we know students who have secured an internship are waiting to find out if they have received funding before accepting their internship offer. Many employers are willing to expedite their decision-making process if they are aware that you are applying for funding from Boston College. You should follow up with the organization to indicate your timeline.

Please note: All application materials must be submitted by the deadline, regardless of circumstances. Applicants who upload “place-holder”  letters of recommendation in order to submit the actual documents after the deadline will not have their applications considered. It is up to you to ensure that you and your internship organization are able to provide all necessary materials on time.

What if I am studying abroad in the spring?

Students who are studying abroad in spring 2024 are welcome to apply. The application process is all online through MyBC and allows flexibility of the student’s geographic location. If you are selected as an Eagle Fellow, we will work with you to obtain your pre-internship information and your disbursement. You can log into your Handshake account and schedule a virtual career coaching appointment with any specific questions.

What does a successful application look like?

A successful application will show that the applicant has reflected on how this internship opportunity will allow them to grow and better understand their professional skills and their career interests. Successful applications will also be clear: they will articulate the importance of their internship to their career goals and discernment and the skills they will develop during the internship. Successful applications will also have a strong resume, a strong letter of recommendation, and a clear offer letter from the organization.

Who can write my letter of recommendation if I choose to submit one?

Generally, a letter of recommendation should be a person who can speak to your skills, interests and experience, which may include an employer or supervisor, faculty or staff. Letters of recommendation should not be written by a peer (i.e. another undergraduate student) or a member of the applicant’s family.

Can Career Center staff provide assistance on the Eagle Intern Fellowship application?

Yes, we are here to help! If you have any remaining questions please schedule a career coaching appointment, visit us during drop-ins hours, or email career.center@veosonica.com for any further assistance.