Funding Your Undergraduate Internship

The School of Communication (SoC) and Northwestern University offer funding to offset cost-of-living expenses for undergraduates pursuing unpaid summer internships and experiences. Students can apply for funding support prior to securing a summer internship. Awards are not finalized until internships have been confirmed.

The SoC Internship Award Program has merged its application process with SIGP. Students with majors in the School of Communication who apply for SIGP will automatically be considered for both the SoC Internship Award Program and SIGP (both awards are $3500). Students selected for a SoC Internship Award will be removed from consideration for SIGP. Students selected for an SoC Internship can still be considered for additional funding through SIGP+.

SoC Internship Award Program Eligibility Requirements:

Must be a School of Communication Evanston-based undergraduate major.
Must be enrolled for at least Fall Quarter 2026.
NU Qatar students are not eligible for this award program; however, Qatar students can apply for NCA’s Summer Internship Grant Program (SIGP) award.
Must work a minimum of 280 hours at an internship over the course of summer 2026.
Must be in good academic standing and in good standing with the Office of Community Standards and the Dean of Students.
Internship must be unpaid or low-paid (~$1500 or less). Priority is given to applicants with demonstrated financial need. If you do not receive financial aid from Northwestern, or receive a minimal amount of financial aid, you will be given the opportunity to explain your financial need in a supplemental essay in the application.
Academic research is not an eligible summer experience for a SoC Internship Award. To qualify, a student must be pursuing an unpaid internship or other practical, career-related experience (e.g. a performance–based experience > See Details Below). Students pursuing academic research should consider other summer funding options.
Students may not be enrolled in/completing more than one academic course over the summer.
Previous award recipients cannot receive the same award multiple times but are eligible to receive a different award.
Students are considered for any SoC internship award that they are qualified to receive.
Students are NOT required to have an internship confirmed before applying; however, they must have secured an internship no later than May 20, 2026.
If awarded, the SoC Internship Award CANNOT be combined with any other summer grants/awards from Northwestern.

Any summer performance-based experience must meet the following criteria to be eligible for a SoC Internship Award:

Must have applied and been selected into a program.
Must participate in 280 hours during summer 2026.
Must have a supervisor/manager who will fill out a mid-term and final performance evaluation.
Programs must include clearly articulated mentorship and/or professional development opportunities.

In the award application students must demonstrate how the performance training or event participation will contribute to their learning.

Examples include:

Educational or professional development opportunities
Mentorship from industry professionals
Networking and making connections with industry professionals
Skill building in broad aspects of the acting/dancing profession
Value of learning how a professional theatre/dance company operates

Additional Information/Resources:

Students who have been invited to participate in an intensive training program or festival should apply for the Student Experience Fund.
Students who have been invited to participate in a conference should apply for a Conference Travel Grant (CTG) through the Office of Undergraduate research.

How to Apply:

Applications for the SoC Internship Award Program will open on February 2nd, 2026.

To streamline the process and eliminate redundancy, the SoC Internship Award Program has merged its application with Northwestern Career Advancement’s (NCA) Summer Internship Grant Program (SIGP) application. SoC students will automatically be considered for both the SoC Internship Award Program and SIGP (both awards are $3500).

You must first complete the General Application on the SES One Form. **If you have never logged into the SES One Form before, the system will automatically direct you to complete the general application.** Applications will be accepted through Northwestern’s SES One Form platform. The application is a two-step process.
After completing the General Application, you MUST complete the “NCA – Summer Internship Grant Program (SIGP) Evanston Campus Application (and SoC Awards)”. Please note: the SIGP questions are different from the General Application Questions. There is not a separate application for the SoC Internship Award Program, but there are additional questions in the SIGP application for SoC students only. The application includes one required essay, one optional essay and your resume.

For tips on resume writing visit our resources here or make an appointment with an EPICS career advisor.

Essay question:

Essays should be original content, written by the applicant.  Students should write these essays in a word processing program and copy and paste them into the text box in the application portal. The required application essay should not exceed 900 words.  The optional supplemental essay will be in a separate text box and not counted in this total word count.

Please write an essay that details your summer plans and how your summer internship/experience connects to your experiences and interests. Your response needs to address each of the following:
1. A detailed description of your summer internship/experience. If you have not yet secured an internship, choose an opportunity you’d like to secure or plan to pursue. If you have applied to multiple opportunities, choose one to focus on for this essay.
2. What do you hope to learn or gain from this internship/experience? Please be specific and provide multiple examples.
3. How does this summer internship/experience connect to your academic studies and/or extracurricular activities? Please be specific and provide multiple examples.
4. How will this experience impact you or the Northwestern community?
5. How does this summer internship/experience align with your academic and/or career goals?
Supplemental Essay: If you have any financial information or additional details about personal or family circumstances that are not reflected on your One Form General Application or in your financial aid package from Northwestern, please elaborate on your financial need, and provide any relevant information you are comfortable sharing. We encourage any student who is not on full scholarship to respond to this optional essay. Your response provides the review committee with relevant details to best assess your application. (NCA will have access to your level of need based on your current financial aid package. Many students already receiving aid will not have additional details to share). PLEASE WRITE “N/A” IF YOU ARE NOT ANSWERING THIS QUESTION.

Applications accepted Monday, February 2, 2026 to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 (by 11:59PM CST)

For questions or more information about these award programs, please contact EPICS at epics@northwestern.edu.

General Tax Information

International students

International students without a U.S. issued taxpayer identification number (ITIN or SSN) will have 14% federal taxes come from their payments; also, any students with a U.S. issued taxpayer identification number whose country does not have a U.S. tax treaty or are not eligible for the tax treaty will automatically have 14% federal taxes taken out of their grant.

Taxes

Although grants are paid through the Payroll Office, most students will not have taxes withheld or wages reported on Form W-2 at the end of the year. The grant or portions of it, however, may still be taxable income. Generally, you must report to the IRS all amounts paid that are not used for qualified expenses (tuition, books, etc.). Please refer to IRS Publication 970. EPICS cannot offer tax advice to students. Please refer to the tax information provided on HR’s website here.

These are the funds that support the SoC Internship Award Program, all from the generosity of donors:

The Bomback Internship Award (Tema and Mark Bomback) is open to all SoC majors who obtain a summer internship in New York or Los Angeles.
The Hammerschlag Internship Award is in memory of Jessica Hammerschlag ’95 and provides funding to SoC majors interning over the summer quarter in any city.
The Molotsky Internship Award (Barbara Molotsky) is open to all SoC majors pursuing internships in marketing, communication, entertainment, and theatre.
The Pate-Sanders Internship Award (sponsored by Melissa and Ron Sanders) supports a student who secures an internship with a digital media component. This internship does not necessarily need to be with a digital media organization.
The Joann Torretta Endowed Internship Award supports SoC majors with preference given to students pursuing an internship in television or radio.
The WCLV Internship Award (Robert Conrad and the late Jean Conrad) supports SoC majors interning in any industry. Preference is given to students with internships in the radio/podcast industry.
The Miller Family Internship Fund provides support to SoC majors working in any industry.