As summer is approaching, you might be interested in learning how Amherst supports students for summer internship opportunities. There are many summer opportunities at Amherst! Whether you are interested in academics, non-academics, on-campus, off-campus, etc. Amherst has something for you!
1. On-Campus Internships
There are soooo many on-campus internships you can participate in over the summer at Amherst.
For example, if you are interested in STEM (including psychology!), you can apply for the Summer Science Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF). The SURF Program is an 8-week program held on campus every summer (typically starting in early June). It is targeted toward freshmen and sophomores, aiming to provide their first immersive research experience. Students in the SURF program work closely with a STEM faculty mentor on a research project, which culminates in a poster presentation at the start of the Fall Session.
If you are interested in the humanities, Amherst got you covered as well! You can apply for the Schupf Fellowship. Schupf Fellows will develop their own research project or conduct collaborative research with a group of students, under the guidance of a faculty member. Students present their work to the campus community in early September, following each summer’s research.
If you don’t want to conduct academic research, there are also many other on-campus opportunities that may suit your interests. For instance, if you are interested in sustainability, the Office of Sustainability has many opportunities for you to engage in. If you are interested in geology or the arts, there are many intern opportunities at Beneski or Mead for program development. If you’re interested in library or archival work, the Frost archival collections have some open spots as well.
There are also some students who just request their professors to conduct research, which is not included in specific fellowships. Overall, there are many opportunities for students to do on campus over the summer at Amherst.
2. Off-Campus Internships
If you want to conduct off-campus internships, then you have even more opportunities. For first-years, it might be hard to find paid internships off-campus. However, Amherst has really generous fellowships to support students in these unpaid internships. There is the Charles Hamilton Houston Internship program that funds students engaging in unpaid or underpaid internships. For first-gen or low-income students, you can apply for the Meiklejohn Fellows Program that provides guaranteed funding for your unpaid or underpaid internships.
Considering all kinds of opportunities that will be offered in college is also a vital aspect in deciding where to go to college. Amherst is a really supportive community in every aspect you can think of, offering plenty of opportunities for students to explore their interests!