Pathfinder Start-up Internship Fund

Student Qualifications:

• Must be a current undergraduate at Boston University at the time of receiving an internship offer.
• Internships must be full-time, 40 hours per week
• Internships must last between 8-12 weeks
• The program will not fund internships that require students to sign non-compete agreements.
• Students whose internship is supported by another sponsored grant during the period covered by the Pathfinder program are not eligible

Startup Qualifications: 

During the application process, students must be able to prove that the startup meets the following criteria: 

• For-profit companies with <$10MM in funding  
• Have less than <$2MM in annual revenue   
• Have an active payroll system for the organization 
• Are not led/founded by current BU students  
• Are not headquartered at the BUild Lab  
• Interns may not be the spouse, child, grandchild, sibling, niece, nephew, or spouse of a child, grandchild, sibling, niece, or nephew of any employee of the hiring company  

Once students have identified and been offered an eligible internship, follow the next steps to be considered for a stipend: 

• Complete the online application by March 20, 2023 and include:
  • A job description from the company and statement of eligibility provided by the startup that the company meets eligibility requirements. 
  • A copy of the offer letter for the internship from the company. 
  • Proof that the student can work in the US.  
  • A W-2 from the company
    
• If you are granted 1 of the 3 stipends, you will be paid by the startup. Innovate@BU will reimburse the startup up to the amount of $8,000. 

Applications are due by March 20, 2023. Students will be notified by March 31, 2023.

Need to share this information with the company you are applying to? Download the PDF Overview.

• What is Boston University Innovate@BU? Innovate@BU is a University-wide initiative to enable all BU Terriers to become drivers of innovation in their own lives, careers, and communities. Through its physical home on campus, the BUild Lab IDG Capital Student Innovation Center, Innovate@BU provides experiential learning programs that foster an entrepreneurial mindset by teaching innovation, communication, and collaboration skills.
  
  
• What is the Hewitt Pathfinder Startup Internship Fund? The program encourages undergraduate students with an interest in entrepreneurship to take summer internships at start-up companies by providing a stipend of up to $8,000 to cover students’ time.
  
  
• Who is eligible for the fund? Boston University undergraduates who are students at the time of receiving the internship offer.
  
  
• What startups of eligible to participate? Students can apply for having their funded if they can prove that they are working at a startup that meets the following criteria:
  • for-profit companies with <$10MM in funding 
  • have less than <$2MM in annual revenue.  
  • are not led/founded by current BU students 
  • are not headquartered at the Build Lab 
  • Program interns may not be the spouse, child, grandchild, sibling, niece, nephew, or spouse of a child, grandchild, sibling, niece, or nephew of any employee of the hiring company. 
  • Students whose internship is supported by another sponsored grant during the same period.
    
    
• What criteria must the internship role meet? Internships must be full-time, 40 hours per week and last between 8-12 weeks. The program will not fund internships that require students to sign non-compete agreements.
  
  
• Will the student also be an employee of Boston University? No. Innovate@BU will be reimbursing the company at the end of the summer internship period. 
  
  
• How does the reimbursement process work? 
  • We will reimburse start-ups only for wages paid to students up to $8,000 and only at the conclusion of the internship.  For a startup to receive reimbursement, it must:
  • • Pay the student as a W-2 employee on a weekly or monthly basis
    • Provide proof of wages/taxes paid in the form of paycheck stubs and/or a payroll summary. All interns must be paid at least a minimum wage in accordance with state law
    • Complete a W-9 form and submit it with a payment request to Boston University Innovate@BU, ℅ Lisa Lavina, lrlavina@bu.edu, Associate Director of Operations