Provost’s Graduate Internship Award

This mechanism will not fund students in programs that have mandatory internships as part of their curriculum; instead, it will fund students, with the consent of their advisor, who seek novel opportunities outside of traditional academe, e.g., in a museum, cultural center, nonprofit organization, or in university administration or academic publishing. The Graduate College will award $5,000 over three months with the assumption of a 20-hour weekly obligation. The student and the host organization may negotiate additional expectations and compensation.

Students with fully paid internships who also seek the PGIA will not be competitive unless, for example, the paid portion is half-time and the student seeks the PGIA in order to have a full-time experience.

Prior to applying, international students are responsible for verifying that their visas will allow them to participate.

• The prospective recipient must be a full-time student, in good academic standing, who is in a PhD or terminal master’s program that does not require an internship or similar experience. (See the FAQs for a list of terminal master’s programs.)
• Students graduating in May or August 2026 are not eligible.
• Winners of the award under its current or former name, the Chancellor’s Graduate Internship Award, or of the Public Service Graduate Internship Award, are not eligible.
• Students who are more advanced in their program of study will be preferentially considered.
• Regardless of FTE, an individual with an Academic Professional (AP or BA), a Civil Service (CS), or an Extra Help (HP) position at the time of appointment is ineligible. UIC Global students are similarly not eligible.
• The faculty advisor/mentor must support the proposed internship as demonstrated by a letter of recommendation.

While the Graduate College can offer limited advice based on extant partnerships internally at UIC and externally, in the greater Chicago area and further afield, students are encouraged to make their own arrangements.

These units have approached the Graduate College with opportunities:

• University of Illinois Press seeks a UIC graduate student for a publishing internship (see link below; updated 1/7/26);
• Destined for Greater Girls (DFGG) seeks an intern or interns for grant writing and resource development; human trafficking research and trends analysis (see link below; updated 1/7/26)
• OVCR/Spatial and Genome Technologies Core seeks a marketing intern (see link below; updated 1/7/26);
• OVCR/Postdoc Office seeks a program development intern (see link below; updated 1/7/26);
• Office of Global Engagement seeks a graduate student who might have an interest in an international education career (see link below; updated 1/08/26);
• OVCR/Office of Research Development seeks a Research Development intern who wishes to learn more about a university’s grant infrastructure (see link below; updated 1/14/26)
• Neomi Press (Tucson, AZ but remote) offers experience with independent literary publishing, with a particular emphasis on marketing, promotion, and programmatic initiatives (see link below; updated 2/2/26)

We will update this list periodically. Last updated: 2/02/26, 22h55.

• University of Illinois Press, 2026
• DFGG (2026)
• UIC Spatial and Genome Technologies Core (OVCR), 2026
• UIC Office of Global Engagement, 2026
• UIC Postdoc Office (OVCR), 2026
• UIC Office of Research Development (OVCR), 2026
• Noemi Press, 2026

Reviewers will consist of faculty and staff members appointed by the Dean of the Graduate College. The reviewers will evaluate the applications using the eligibility and selection criteria (below). The reviewers will make recommendations to the Graduate College Dean, who will determine the final recipients.

• A clear articulation of the goals of the internship.
• Demonstrated investment of the internship provider in the graduate student’s experience.
• The extent to which the identified internship aligns with the applicant’s career goals.
• An excellent record of academic performance, as attested to by the student’s CV and letters of recommendation.

Non-renewable, the award amount will be $5,000 paid out over three months: June 16-August 16. There is no tuition and fee waiver attached. Each student’s taxation situation is unique and the Graduate College is not qualified to provide tax advice.

The student is responsible for arranging for the electronic delivery of all documentation to their program. The Director of Graduate Studies (or proxy) will review the application and submit it to the Graduate College by the submission deadline. Incomplete applications will not be considered. *NOTE: As the student’s department/program must review all student applications prior to submitting them to the Graduate College, programs are strongly encouraged to establish an internal deadline. There is currently no limit to the number of nominations from a program; however, we anticipate funding approximately ten awards.

The student collects and compiles the required documents and submits them to their academic degree program for review. The Director of Graduate Studies of that program submits the documents to the Graduate College.

Applications must include all of the following, in order:

1. DGS Transmittal Form – The Director of Graduate Studies needs to complete this brief form.

2. Applicant Transmittal Form – The student completes this form.

3. Internship Description – Written by the student. (Limit: 3 pages of content including any references; single spaced; 10-12 Arial font; one-inch margins) — A concise, substantive description of the proposed plan for the internship and general interaction between the student intern and the proposed host/partner organization, including a justification for the duration of the proposed internship, timeline, and expected mutual benefits and outcomes of the experience. Written for the educated lay person, the jargon-free Internship Description must describe how the student intern will:

• integrate the proposed internship activities into the student’s graduate degree program and future career goals;
• benefit from mentoring and specialized expertise, experiences, equipment, facilities, and/or other resources at the host organization.

4. Résumé or CV (Limit of 4 pages) – Include previous and current research experience, professional accomplishments (i.e., awards, honors, publications, presentations), and pertinent work experience.

5. Statement of Commitment – Signed by an authorized representative of the host/partner organization, the statement of commitment should include duties, duration, weekly time commitment, additional compensation/benefits (if applicable), and potential for future employment with the internship provider. The internship provider should indicate how the host/parent organization commits to providing the graduate student intern with the best possible experience.

6. Two letters of recommendation – Of the two, one letter must be from the applicant’s faculty advisor/mentor. Written on UIC letterhead, the letter should describe the anticipated benefits of the internship for the student’s graduate studies and/or the anticipated impact on the student’s career. The letter must also indicate that the student is making satisfactory progress in their graduate degree program. The second letter may be from a faculty member (UIC or external) or from a staff/executive member of the host organization.

• PGIA Applicant Transmittal
• PGIA DGS Transmittal

The graduate student submits or arranges electronic submission of the required documents to the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) of their degree program. The DGS reviews the documents, completes the DGS Transmittal Form, and creates a single PDF file of the documents listed below in the order listed. The department or program emails the PDF to the Graduate College’s Box folder employing the following naming convention using the example of Charlie Baudelaire, a PhD student in the history department: PGIA_2025_Hist_BaudelaireC.pdf. Please use your course rubric or an obvious abbreviation for your program name.

• Director of Graduate Studies transmittal form (completed by the DGS)
• Applicant transmittal form (completed by the student)
• Internship description (limit of 3 pages; completed by the student)
• Résumé or cv (limit of 4 pages; completed by the student)
• Statement of commitment (from the host organization)
• Two (2) letters of recommendation (one of which is from the student’s faculty advisor/mentor)

Q. For this competition, what are UIC’s terminal master’s programs? 

They are: Architecture (MArch; MS); Architecture in Health Design (MS); Biomedical Visualization (MS); City Design (MCD); Civic Analytics (MS); Design Criticism (MA); Graphic and Industrial Design (MDes); Environmental & Urban Geography (MA); French and Francophone Studies (MA); Health Professions Education (MPHE); History (MAT); Art (MFA); LALS (MA); MUSE; Occupational Therapy (MS); Spanish (MAT).

Q. Are programs that require an internship eligible?

A. No. If your program requires an internship, you are not eligible. For example, students pursuing the internship track in Civic Analytics would be ineligible.

Q. Would you offer an award to an applicant with a fully-funded internship?

A. Doubtful. That is not in the spirit of the program. One possible exception: if a student has secured a remunerated half-time internship but they and the host seek a full-time experience.

Q. Must applicants be positively selected by the host prior to applying for the PGIA?

A. Yes, but…Some hosts may hedge their bets and provide positive signals to two applicants for one position prior to our deadline and then make their their selection after our deadline. That’s fine. I will reach out to a potential host if there is any confusion. To receive the PGIA, the applicants needs to be selected by the host and by the Graduate College.

Q. Can I apply to two different internships?

A. You may apply to two different hosts; however, you may submit only one PGIA for one experience. If you receive two offers, you would have to choose one before submitting your PGIA application.

Q. I would like to fund this program. Whom shall I contact?

A. Please contact Benn Williams (bwilli7@uic.edu) and he will connect you with a trained professional in the Office of Advancement.

Additional questions? Please contact Benn Williams, Fellowships & Awards Coordinator, via email: bwilli7@uic.edu.