SUMMARY
Building upon the success of previous years’ Intern Match (we’ve helped over one hundred local startups and entrepreneurial organizations hire many of the region’s best potential interns), Fosterly’s Internship Match Initiative is back.
Intern Match is open to all startups and entrepreneurial organizations in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. Students are invited to participate from the higher education institutions listed below. Intern Match is (and always will be) free for students. Companies who completed the #FosterlyCensus can participate for free, while there is a $99 payment for all other organizations.
FORMAT
Students from participating schools, startups, and entrepreneurial organizations from the DC region fill out an online application. Participating organizations in the DC region receive a list of all applicants (with gender and race info redacted) and then contact the applicants they’re interested in via our online system. Discussions and interviews are conducted. Students get hired.* Everyone rejoices.
*Legal mumbo jumbo: Participating organizations are under no obligation to extend internship offer(s) and applicants are not guaranteed internship opportunities.
TIMELINE
There are no future Intern Matches planned at this time.
PARTICIPATING HIGHER EDUCATION PARTNERS
Only students from participating higher education partners are eligible for Intern Match. Don’t see your school listed? Contact InternMatch@fosterly.com to inquire.
How does Intern Match really work? What’s the process?
Applicants and organizations fill out their respective applications. (If you’re an organization that participated in the #FosterlyCensus, your application will be quite quick.) Fosterly representatives and volunteers will conduct a manual review of the received information and will provide both internship applicants and organizations a list of potential matches (along with their associated information) via e-mail. It is then up to the applicants and organizations to connect to schedule an interview and take additional steps if needed.
Is there a cost to participate?
Intern Match is (and always will be) free to participate for students. Hiring organizations who participated in the 2018 #FosterlyCensus can participate for free. All other organizations can participate for $99 dollars. Unfortunately, it is too late to submit a response for the 2018 #FosterlyCensus.
Is the $99 employer fee refundable?
Nope! While we are providing free access to students and companies that participated in the 2018 #FosterlyCensus, the $99 fee supports the #InternMatch. As such, the $99 fee is non-refundable.
Do we need to pay interns?
[Puts on lawyer hat.] Please consult your attorney. [Takes off lawyer hat.] Fosterly advocates for fair pay, and as such, we hope you’ll compensate your interns. That said, the U.S. Department of Labor has a six point test for whether you are legally required to pay your interns. Interested in what it says? Take a look here: https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.htm.
Is Intern Match only for undergraduate students?
No. Graduate students can participate as well.
I am a high school student. May I participate?
E-mail InternMatch@fosterly.com.
What’s the logic behind the blind matching?
There’s been a lot of talk lately about gender and racial bias in hiring (with at least one report saying that when judged anonymously, women outperform men in coding). We’ve devised a method where the initial data review will have a high likelihood of removing gender and racial bias from the initial match. Once a participating organization reached out to a student, true identity would be revealed when the student replies.
How does blind matching work?
Participating students will be asked to omit their name, e-mail address, and social media profiles from their resumes (but not from their online application form). Upon submission, each applicant will be assigned a random and unique applicant ID number. The data that will be provided to participating organizations will have all reasonably identifiable information omitted replaced with the applicant’s ID number, thus forcing them to make decisions based on merit. After participating organizations decide which applicants they want to contact they’ll then submit their contact information in an online form which will automatically send information about the company to the applicant. The applicant will then respond to the organization, thus revealing their true identity. (Trust us, it’s a lot simpler in practice than you might think.)
Are we guaranteed an intern if we participate as an organization?
Nope. Fosterly can only guarantee that your info will be passed along. However, if past Intern Match Initiatives serve as a benchmark, many participants will receive multiple offers and many organizations will make offers.
Am I guaranteed an internship if I participate as a student?
Nope. Fosterly can only guarantee that your info will be passed along. However, if past Intern Match Initiatives serve as a benchmark, many participants will receive multiple offers.
My university or college isn’t listed as a higher education partner. Can I still participate?
We would love to onboard your school. Please have a faculty member or administrator contact Fosterly via e-mail at InternMatch@fosterly.com.
I’m a student that found a job. Woot! Should I notify you about my status chance?
Yes, please do. Head over to the e-mail InternMatch@fosterly.com to let us know if your status changes and we’ll remove your info from the applicant pool.