CU in the City: Community Scholars

CU in the City - title text

The ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ Community Scholars Program fosters civic engagement, professional development and experiential learning for undergraduate students by integrating academic coursework with real-world experience. We build strong connections between the university and the greater community by placing students in paid internships with local government and nonprofit organizations. This program helps students gain the skills, knowledge and hands-on experience to become effective contributors and leaders in their community.Ìý

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"The Community Scholars program helped me understand and experience a real-world application of my degree and developed my understanding of the election process on the local, state and federal level. CU in the City was one of my best experiences during my undergraduate studies. I am still working at the job I received then and the experience has been invaluable. I am off to law school next year!"

Jack Megenhardt
ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ alum

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CU in the City: Step by step

Submit an application!

Applications open at the beginning of each semester.

Land an internship.

Get paired with an internship that fits your specific interests and qualifications.

Make connections and build your network!

Meet professionals in your field of interest to help kickstart your career.

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"A large part of obtaining my job with the Boulder Police Department was through my internship at the DA’s office, which I got through the CU in the City: Community Scholars program."

Sean Pelton
ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ alum

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CU in the City: Requirements and benefits

  • Community Scholars are placed in assignments with the city of Boulder, other local governments, various nonprofit organizations and other community-oriented agencies.
  • Internships require a minimum of 16 hours of work per week and may include evening meetings/work. Interns will work for 13 weeks with their sponsor organization.
  • Community Scholars develop professional experience and skills, gain insights into the dynamics of community organizations and learn how nonprofit organizations function and interact within their broader communities.
  • Duties may include proposal writing, direct client services, fundraising and marketing, policy research, grassroots organizing and outreachÌýand program management.
  • Students are placed into internships in theÌýcommunityÌýbased on their interests, which they work 16 hours per week during the semester.
  • Students will typically align those hours at the internship on M/W or T/TH, which permits them to take their other CU classes on the days they are not interning.
  • All Community Scholars are required to complete Special Topics: Community Scholarscourse for three credit hours.ÌýThis course will cover information about community leadership in an informal setting with guest speakers.
  • In addition, students can opt-to arrange with their major/minor department to gain an additional three credit hours of disciplinary internship credit. These additional three credit hours may require separate assignments per the requirements of the academic unit. For example, political science majors could also enroll in Internship in Government course.

Get in touch

Please email Kathy Noonan atÌýnoonankc@colorado.eduÌýor Glen Krutz at Glen.Krutz@colorado.edu if you have any questions about the program.

STUDENTS
Applications are open.

View application

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PARTNERS
Please email us to discuss partnership opportunities. We look forward to collaborating with you soon.