What kind of skills are these internship sites looking for?
Writing, research, analytical, speaking, and organizational skills are crucial. The linked goals of these internships are, one, for students to bring the skills and knowledge they are developing in their humanities PhD programs to nonacademic settings, and; two, to enhance these and other other organizational and professional skills for application to nonacademic careers.
How will applicants be evaluated?
Applicants will be evaluated on their academic accomplishments (including degree progress) and the appropriateness of their professional goals for this program.
Do you know the approximate dates/hours of the internship?
Recipients will work on average 20 hours per week for 8 weeks. Dates can be negotiated with the host organization. Applicants should be flexible over the entire summer. In addition there may be scheduled separate group activities for all the interns to further develop their organizational and professional skills, to reflect upon their internship experiences, and to prepare for a public presentation in September.
How will I be compensated?
Students in years 1-5 (dated by moment of application) will receive their contractual stipend as “non-service” for the eight-week internship period. But, importantly, this will not count against students’ non-service stipend limits because the internship is professional development. So, for example, if a student was contractually to receive 24 months non-service funding plus 36 months service funding for a total of 60 months funding, then accepting the BUCH internship would increase their total non-service support to 26 months and reduce their service requirement to 34 months without expanding the 60 month window. In other words, accepting a BUCH Internship will not decrease overall funding support for dissertation completion.
Students beyond the fifth year receive a stipend of $7,725, equivalent to 8 weeks of labor at 20 hours per week.
What should my recommender focus on in their letter?
Letters should foreground applicants’ writing, research, analytical, speaking, and organizational skills; note the applicant’s ability to communicate ideas and arguments without jargon; and, importantly, highlight the student’s’ interest in exploring career opportunities outside of higher education.