External Internships
Non-Profit Internships for Yawkey Program Funding Application
Spark! is partnering with the Yawkey Nonprofit Internship Program to help students secure internships with nonprofits this summer (Summer 2026). Boston University’s Yawkey Program offers funding for students to work with nonprofit organizations. The nonprofit provides the internship, and the Yawkey provides the funding. Applicants for funding must already have secured a qualified internship. Spark! has identified several internships with nonprofits in its network who are interested in hosting technical interns this summer. Before applying to the Yawkey program for funding, there are a few steps to complete before submitting, and note that this process generally takes a few weeks, so students will have to move quickly to meet first-round deadlines.
**NOTE: Students need to complete all of the steps listed below need to be completed and submit an application to the Yawkey Program by April 25 for round 1 and May 15 for round 2. This includes securing an internship with one of the organizations listed below, which are all waiting for applicants**
1. Interested students should review the Yawkey Program’s eligibility requirements for students
2. Attend the prerequisite workshop: Funded Internship Programs 101 (there are recorded trainings on the application page below or on Handshake):
3/30 5 PM-6 PM: Workshop Link
4/7 12 PM-1 PM: Workshop Link
4/16 5 PM-6 PM: Workshop Link
3. Secure an unpaid, nonprofit internship (see the list below for organizations from the Spark! network who are interested in hosting technical or design interns)
4. Share the Employer Internship Confirmation Form with your supervisor once your internship is secured
5. Secure a letter of recommendation from a BU faculty or staff member (make this request ASAP). Spark! staff/ faculty are happy to provide this for students who have participated in our programming.
6. Submit your application to Yawkey for funding (300 hours/ $4500 for summer; 150 hours/ $2250 for Fall/Spring)
For detailed instructions on these steps, refer to the Yawkey Program: Application page. Any questions: reach out to yawkey@bu.edu.
