VCU Internship Funding Program
Undergraduates, are you interviewing for or have you accepted an off-campus internship that is unpaid and/or Virginia-based for the spring semester, and are worried it may not cover your spring expenses? Don't let your funding needs keep you from taking advantage of opportunities for personal and professional growth. Apply for funding for your spring semester experience through the VCU Internship Funding Program!
Funding will be awarded as a direct deposit. It can be used to supplement costs for your initial travel to your internship, daily commuting via public transportation, housing, childcare, professional attire, supplies, and more.
Spring 2026 applications open Sunday, October 12.
In the meantime, please review the essay questions and the review rubric.
Complete and eligible student applications will undergo a competitive selection process that involves multiple rounds of review by a committee of approximately 20 faculty and staff members from both campuses. Funding is not guaranteed to all applicants, but we hope to support as many students as possible. Awardees will be notified by December, and payments will ideally be dispersed by Friday, January 16.
If you have other questions, please review the FAQs or email Jeanette Hickl at jwhickl@vcu.edu or visit our drop-in hours in the University Student Commons, 1st floor.
Basic Information
In order to be eligible to apply, students must:
- Be a current VCU undergraduate student.
- IFP funding is not currently available for previous IFP awardees, incoming students, graduating seniors, or alumni.
- Eligibility is not restricted by citizenship.VCU international students can contact Immigration Services for custom advising related to employment, including internships. Check out the Student Employment Authorizations page for additional information.
- Eligibility is not restricted by financial aid.
- Plan to enroll for at least one semester (summer or fall 2026) after your funded internship in a VCU undergraduate program.
- May not have any financial holds on account.
- Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress during the semester before and during your experience.
Eligible internship experiences must:
- Be unpaid or underpaid and located in Virginia, based on applicable expenses noted in the budget worksheet.
- Be working with and funded, where applicable, by an off-campus employer.
- Internships within or paid by VCU offices/departments will not qualify for IFP funding. However, we encourage VCU offices interested in internship support to dedicate their departmental funds to hiring VCU students. VCU Health is an off-campus employer.
- Be supervised by a professional staff member within the employer organization, not affiliated with VCU.
- IFP support cannot be used for entrepreneurial startup funding, pay-to-play programs with required placement fees or tuition to participate in the internship, including abroad
- Exceptions for abroad experiences include when, as an applicant, you can write about the specifics of your internship and the experience is verified by GEO, SimpleSearch, or unstructured learning experiences.
- Experience must be at least four weeks long and occur during the summer semester.
To apply, you will need to submit the following:
- A completed application through the RAMS Scholarship Hub (Important: Complete the General Application and then search "VCU Internship Funding Program").
- An outline of your proposed budget using a completed copy of the Budget Worksheet Template.
- This file is View Only. To make your copy, 1) go to File on the taskbar, 2) scroll down to Download, and 3) select Microsoft Excel.
- When the file downloads to your computer, name it using your V number, including the V, and upload the completed version as an Excel file (preferred) or a PDF.
- Make sure all the cell’s contents are visible.
- Answers to essay questions. Please note that this also includes the review rubric that the committee will be using.
How to apply for the VCU Internship Funding Program session
- Wednesday, October 15, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. (register on Handshake)
The Writing Center is available to assist you with your application. Students active in Navigate can schedule one (1) appointment per day up to three (3) days a week. Their call hours for questions or scheduling are Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. and Friday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. To reach the Writing Center during these hours, call (804) 828-4851. For questions or concerns outside of those hours, please email writingctr1@vcu.edu, but be aware that appointments can only be scheduled through Navigate.
The VCU Financial Success Center by Virginia Credit Union is here to assist you with all personal finance-related questions as you consider spring internship opportunities. Learn how to schedule an appointment with a peer financial coach to discuss budget and cash flow planning, creating savings goals, and get personalized assistance filling out your budget worksheet. Check out the website for more information. However, please note that funding eligibility is determined solely by the scholarship review committee.
Frequently Asked Questions
For answers to Frequently Asked Questions, please refer to this Google document.