Entry Point!

For 2017, we’ve received and reviewed 65 candidate applications, representing 48 post-secondary institutions and 20 disability conditions. Each candidate submitted a portfolio of materials: cover letter, resume, transcript, two recommendations and statements of U.S. citizenship and any job accommodations needed for a disability. Of the 65 applicants, 45 students met the criteria for one or more sites and were referred to the appropriate partners.

So far, four students have secured 10-week internships, with a fifth pending. Your contributions have helped defray costs of placing these students.

Beyond financial constraints, we also face other challenges, including a very high level of achievement required by many of our sites, requests by sites for students with particular disabilities or disability types, and logistical challenges in placing some of our students. For instance, some applicants aren’t able to travel to labs far from home.

While other programs now exist to help place students with disabilities find internships, Entry Point! remains unique in the level of interaction we provide with our applicants, and the relationships we build. Staff work directly with student applicants throughout the placement process, helping to find the right fit for the student, and helping the students present themselves favorably to their prospective summer employer, and we continue to support our interns (and vice versa) long after the summer program is over.