RMHUC Summer Undergraduate Internship Program
The Club has sponsored Harvard Undergraduates in summer employment in the Denver area for over ten years.
Make a donation to the Summer Program
Through the summer of 2009, our vehicle for this has been the Summer Community Service Fellowship run by the Harvard Alumni Association. In the SCSF program, the Club underwrote a fellowship grant to a student who worked for a non-profit organization, which got the student's services at no cost. We averaged one student per year in this program.
In 2010 and 2011, we sponsored students through the CLIMB (Colorado Leaders, Interns, and Mentors in Business) program, an affiliate of Yale's Bulldogs Across America. CLIMB finds jobs in the Denver area and encourages students from a variety of schools to apply for them. An employer commits to pay the student at least $2,700 for a ten-week period, and for-profit employers additionally pay $1,800 to CLIMB to cover the cost of housing and local events during their stay. The balance of the costs comes from subsidies from the students' schools, local alumni organizations, and direct contributions to the program.
Harvard College does not contribute to summer employment of this kind, so the ability of Harvard students to participate in this program comes down to support from the RMHUC. In our 2011-12 budget, we allocated a bit over 20% to our Summer Undergraduate Internship Program. This will support two students. Additional students can be supported if we get more members than budgeted or by direct contributions to the RMHUC Summer Program.
The Club supported two students in 2010, and in 2011, we sponsored three deserving students. Our goal is to expand our support in 2012.
Advantages of CLIMB over the SCSF:
- A larger variety of jobs is available to the students.
- Employers have more interest in the student, because they are paying a salary.
- Per-student costs to the RMHUC are less because the employer is paying a share.
- Students are housed together at UC Denver dormitory space, giving them community at a reasonable cost.
- Students have weekly events that expose them to the history, culture, and civic life in the Front Range.
- Student are paired with an alumni mentor, which can prove beneficial to both.
How you can help support Harvard students in CLIMB:
- Join the Club.
- Make financial contribution to the RMHUC Summer Undergraduate Internship Program.
- Post summer jobs through CLIMB.
- Be a mentor to a CLIMB student (Memorial Day through early August).
- Host an event for the CLIMB program.
- Participate in CLIMB's year-round organizational functions.
For more information, contact Anna Jones, the RMHUC liaison to CLIMB.