Center for Career Exploration

LINK Opportunity Program

SPRINT LINK Opportunities are part of the SPRINT family of programs, supporting experiential learning by providing students with access to funding for opportunities, both domestic and abroad. The SPRINT LINK program specifically supports unpaid internships that are not affiliated with Brown University

LINK Opportunity Program

Goals of the LINK Program

The goal of all SPRINT LINK Opportunity Program, experiential learning internships is to enable students to:

Gain and apply new skills, and deepen existing ones
Develop mentoring relationships;
Engage in career exploration
Contribute to positive outcomes for themselves and their communities

SPRINT LINK Opportunities also provide financial support for students who may not be able to engage in such an opportunity without funding. Students should have secured an internship opportunity prior to applying for a LINK Opportunity.

Applicants should familiarize themselves with the NACE Career Readiness competencies. And be prepared to reflect on how the opportunity they are applying for fits into their career journey.

Eligibility

Funding Amount

Application Deadline

Application and Selection

Criteria for a SPRINT LINK Opportunity

Students applying for a SPRINT LINK must have already accepted or have been offered an opportunity with an employer.
Opportunity must be supervised by a professional in the employing organization (a non-Brown sponsor) who signs the SPRINT Supervisor statement. The opportunity is required to have a supervisor who will provide regular oversight and mentorship throughout the summer. The supervisor must be a permanent employee of the organization and cannot be another student.
All SPRINT opportunities involving travel must adhere to Brown’s Travel Policy. Please note, section 3.9 in particular, as it relates to travel risk and safety. To receive funding, all eligible students participating in opportunities in person and outside of Rhode Island must register travel plans in TravelSafe (Sponsoring Department: Center for Career Exploration or Dean of the College; Purpose of Travel: Internship or Research).
If a student’s program requires international travel, they must adhere to the University's travel policy, including but not limited to, registering their travel in TravelSafe and completing a Safety Plan for review and approval of Brown High-Risk travel, as applicable. Safety Plans for international travel to Brown High-Risk destinations must be reviewed and approved by the Global Travel Risk Assessment Committee (GTRAC) before awardees can be approved by SPRINT to receive funding. Opportunities in Brown High-Risk destinations may be declined and the funding may be rescinded by SPRINT if travel is deemed ineligible by GTRAC.
Please review the Travel@Brown website for more information.
Your summer internship or research experience must be unpaid and you will not receive additional funding from another source, including other fellowships, Brown departments, etc.
Research opportunities under LINK are only permitted at non-Brown affiliated institutions and with a non-Brown professor/sponsor. If you are unsure about an affiliation, please contact the SPRINT program at StudentExploration@brown.edu.
A member of a student's family cannot run or have a substantial management interest in a student's host organization nor serve as a student's sponsor directly or indirectly.

If you have previously interned 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 and not an extension or continuation of the previous position. Funding is unlikely to be granted for an internship that you have already engaged with.

Ineligible Opportunities

Educational programs for credit, programs with fees to participate, and pay-to-participate internship placement programs coordinated through third-party vendors are not eligible for SPRINT funding.
Projects with an organization involved with the use, production, testing, or distribution of recreational or medical marijuana are not eligible (as the use of marijuana is illegal at the federal level and Brown University receives federal funds, we must comply with federal law).
Research opportunities at other universities that require SPRINT awardees to pay tuition.
Camp counselors and tutoring positions are not considered internship opportunities and will not be eligible for SPRINT funding.
Opportunities with a Brown student club, organization, or class or experiences that are a continuation of work done with a Brown club or organization during the academic year.
Organizations and programs that expect their interns and employees to engage in fundraising through street solicitations or call centers.
Non-credit course or training programs that do not contain a professional, experiential learning components; thees includes programs where the main components include observing, shadowing, and attending lectures.
Internship or project receiving Brown course credit (e.g. teaching requirement for teacher certification/education concentration)
Projects that fulfill the criteria of the Brown University UTRA (Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards) Program. LINK funding may not be used for research conducted on campus with a Brown professor, faculty, or staff member - please see UTRA Awards for this type of experience. Email studentexploration@brown.edu with any questions.
A Brown University sponsored, funded, or affiliated research opportunity or internship, or an opportunity in a program that is supported by Brown University.
Internship at a Brown University department or office, or where a Brown faculty or staff member is the supervisor.
Pre-thesis research at Brown or elsewhere without significant experiential learning component.

Required Application Materials

Have your resume and cover letter ready.
- We encourage you to engage with the Center for Career Exploration’s Resume and Cover Letter Support Resources .
- You can choose to upload the cover letter written and submitted to your summer internship.
- Committee members will use the resume and cover letter to evaluate how the proposed experience will fit with previous experiences and provide opportunity for future experiences. Please note: your resume and cover letter are not being evaluated to determine the number or caliber of previous opportunities, but instead to provide a holistic view of you as an applicant. Career exploration and readiness are some of our top priorities and if you have not yet had a professional opportunity, this will not impact your candidacy.
Upload a completed Supervisor Statement form and a job description of the internship or research opportunity.
Be prepared to answer the following short answer question within the application:
- Career Readiness is a foundation from which to demonstrate requisite core competencies that broadly prepares the college educated for success in the workplace and lifelong career management.
  - SELECT 2 NACE Career competencies and explain in TWO to THREE bulleted statements, for EACH competency you select, how you demonstrate those strengths from previous experiences AND how you will apply those strengths in this Summer Experience.
  - SELECT 2 NACE Career competencies that you will develop BECAUSE of this summer experiential opportunity. Provide TWO to THREE bulleted examples of how this opportunity will help you develop EACH skill listed.
- Optional - If you have worked with this organization in the past, please explain how this experience would be substantially different. (e.g., will you be taking on additional duties or deepening your research skills in some way)?
Complete the UFUNDS Application.
ALL documents must be uploaded with your application in UFUNDS. The Center for Career Exploration will not accept application materials directly.
Selection committees will only review requested materials. Additional materials, such as letters of recommendation, transcripts, etc. will not be considered.
No extensions or exceptions.
Applications are not considered on a rolling basis.

The Brown SPRINT LINK Program is funded by Brown alums and parents, the Office of Financial Aid, as well as other Brown departments, and is administered by Center for Career Exploration.