Frequently Asked Questions

No, we welcome students with varying degrees of knowledge and experience with reproductive rights and social justice. 

No, we have a mix of majors each year. 

No, you must not be graduating with a four-year degree in Spring or Summer. In other words, you must be a returning student in the semester following your Collective Rising internship. 

No, graduate students are not eligible for a Collective Rising internship. 

Yes, all interns are required to attend the training in the spring whether via in-person or virtual. All costs correlated with travel, transportation, hotel stay/lodging, and meals are covered by Collective Power for Reproductive Justice. 

Yes, we opened our program to students at community colleges in 2007. 

Yes, we welcome all undergraduate students. 

The stipend is $5,500. The stipend will be paid out in 2 disbursements at specific points throughout the summer.  

No, housing is not provided by Collective Power or your host organization.  Your host organization can give you some helpful tips, but will not find housing for you.  

All internships are 10 weeks long and full-time (30 hours a week), between June 2nd and August 22nd.

No, all interns must commit to a full-time 10-week internship. 

You coordinate the start and end dates of your internship with your organization, most are flexible with start and end dates.  

Yes, please indicate this on your application under “geographical preferences.” Also note that many organizations have moved to a remote-working module as a result of the pandemic. We will try to match you with the organization that you have the most interest in, but we cannot guarantee selections. Please be open to where you are placed – unless there is a geographical issue, we are unable to switch your selected host site. 

Yes, please read intern final reports here. 

There is a mix of both large and small organizations. You can take a look at past organizations under “Host Site Organizations” tab on our website.

It depends on the organization; some will have other summer interns from other programs. Sometimes, two or more Collective Rising interns are placed at the same organization, but that is rare.  

Yes, all interns will have a supervisor/mentor that will work with them. 

Collective Power staff cannot help interns find housing. Once placed at an organization, an intern can ask the organization for suggestions, but the organizations will not find housing for the intern. 

We plan to host both in person and remote internships. Whether they are in person or remote is dependent on the organization. For those that will be traveling to their host site locations, all costs associated with traveling to and from internship sites will be covered.

Yes, please let us know this in your application. 

Yes, please explain in your application why you want to work in this field and what you hope to learn from it. 

Yes, you will receive an email confirmation. If you don’t receive an email confirmation, we have not received your application! 

Yes, we ask you to select your top five organizations, but if you only want to apply for 1-4 organizations that is fine as well. 

No, the Collective Rising application is only available online. If you need special accommodations please let us know. 

No, we don’t start evaluating applicants until after the application closes. It doesn’t matter when you apply during the application period. However, we highly recommend you apply as early as you can in case of technical issues. We will not accept late applications. 

Please send an email to internships@collectivepowerrj.org and someone will get back to you. 

You can update your contact information in the application portal.

A personal statement and a resume. 

No, we do not ask for your GPA. 

No, not at all. 

No two Collective Rising internships are exactly alike which means you have to carefully read through the organization’s internship description.  

Make sure you have the needed skills or background to complete an internship with a particular organization.  

Peruse the organization’s website and social media accounts to get a better feel for the organization, its mission and its constituents.  

Finally, read past interns final reports which are located at the bottom of an organization’s internship description, if available.

Yes. Your recommendation must come from either a faculty member or from a work/volunteer supervisor before the application closes. Please be sure to ask for a recommendation from someone who knows you well and can give us a great understanding of who you are. 

No. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.  

Yes, this is fine. 

Your recommender will receive an email directly from us when you input their contact information in your online application. You can send them reminders about it as well. This email will contain a link to a form for your recommender to fill out.  Your recommender will receive a confirmation that their recommendation has been received and you will receive a confirmation as well. If you need other accommodations, please let us know. Please note: your application is not considered complete unless your recommender has submitted their recommendation form. 

No, you will only be allowed to submit your application once your recommendation has been received. 

No, all recommenders must fill out the Collective Rising recommendation form. 

We want to get a better picture of who you are. 

Prior to this year, the statement needed to be submitted in two to three pages in length, double-spaced, Times New Roman font, size 12. 

However for 2025 application, the questions are embedded in the form.

Please write a statement to tell us about yourself and why you are interested in the Collective Rising program. Your personal statement can be in short answer format and answer the following questions: 

• What social justice issues are you most passionate about and how do they connect to Reproductive Justice for you? 
• Describe a time when you identified a social problem and took action to change it. What did you do and what did you learn from the experience? 

Please provide enough detail so that the review committee will have a good understanding of who you are and why you are applying to the Collective Rising internship program. 

In one page, list and briefly describe: 

• Past work, internship, or volunteer experiences. Indicate the organizations where you worked and the dates of employment. Also include a short description of your work. 
• Any other training, academic, or study abroad experiences that may be relevant to your application. 
• List your relevant skills and interests. This may include: language proficiency, computer skills, research skills, writing abilities, film/video proficiency, political involvement, etc. 

Please make sure to address the skills required for the internships you have chosen.

No. Your resume helps us understand your past experience and skills.  Most educational institutions have a career services office which can help you with this or you can refer to this Resume Guide from Smith College’s Lazarus Center for Career Development. Your experience not on the resume can also be volunteer work and student group involvement.

No, resumes must not be more than one page long. Remember its about highlighting your relevant experience. Also note that we only accept written resumes, a video or interactive resume is not permissible.

The reading team consists of Collective Power staff and former Collective Rising interns and/or Fellows. The Fellows vary from year to year and receive training on how to read applications. Team members read through the completed applications to identify the students that best match our mission to have an intern cohort with various skills, experiences, and backgrounds. From this group, the Program Manager and the Program Coordinator select the students invited for an interview. 

The interview committee are Collective Power staff members including the Program Manager, the Program Coordinator, and Collective Rising Program Fellows. Please refer to the timeline listed above to see when students will be notified about being invited to interview with the Collective Rising Programs team.

Interviews will take place February-March. 

No, all interviews are over Zoom, an online meeting platform. 

You will meet with two staff members who will learn more about you, your experiences, your skills, and your reasons for wanting to complete a Collective Rising internship. 

We will select 40-45 students for the 2025 Collective Rising cohort. 

Yes. Some of our great success stories were waitlisted.  

Yes, we always receive more applications than available internship spots, but our placement process is holistic and we strive for a cohort made up of students with various skills, experiences, and backgrounds. 

Yes! We always have strong applicants who are not awarded internships.  We encourage you to re-apply the following year and can provide feedback for the following year’s application. 

Please refer to the timeline listed above about the dates you should expect to hear back on acceptance into the program.

Yes, please note this in your application. 

You will have at least 2-3 days from the time you receive your offer to accept your placement. 

The internship training will take place in April during Collective Power for Reproductive Justice’s conference. See above timeline for updated internship location + dates. All costs correlated with travel, transportation, hotel stay/lodging, and meals are covered by Collective Power for Reproductive Justice. 

The Collective Rising Cohort will have skills training on communication, leadership, organizing, reproductive justice, social justice, non-profit organizations, budgeting, and resilience practices.  

Yes. There will be opportunities for Collective Rising Interns to connect with each other and get more training throughout the summer. 

Yes, this just needs to be coordinated with your host organization prior to the start of the internship. 

Yes,  interns are expected to attend “Brown Bag lunches” – which are opportunities for the students to connect and learn about RJ related topics. Additionally, all interns are expected to complete an exit interview with the Collective Power Program Fellow.  

You must return your entire internship stipend to Collective Power.