I’ll write another blog post after I return from my trip so that I can reflect on its impact, but I will give some background as to my experience so far with ThinkImpact. I found the program through two venues actually, which I took as a good omen. My gap year program, Thinking Beyond Borders has sent alums on the trip, so they sent out some information about it, and there was information about it in the Change newsletter, which is where I find most social innovation opportunities. I had read up on some other summer programs and internships, but ThinkImpact really stood out to me as something exceptional.

The application process was not that difficult, just a resume and a few short answers for the first round, and then an interview for the second. The hardest part for me was actually putting together my resume. I met with a counselor at the Career Center and she gave me a lot of good advice with formatting and things like that, which was useful not just for applying to this program but to others in the future. I also started my application pretty early and so I had a lot of time to think about my responses for my short answers, so I would recommend just taking some time to think about what you want to present in your application.

As far as financing goes, I knew that this was a program that I wanted to go on, so my parents and I have worked out a system to pay for it. The program itself is pretty pricey, not to mention airfare, so it was definitely a commitment, but it’s important enough to me to dip into my savings and work out a partial lending system with my parents. I also applied for a Newcomb Grant and received enough money to cover my airfare, which was extremely helpful. My program didn’t meet the requirements of most of the Tulane grants because it was either not self-directed or not Tulane-affiliated, but both the Dean’s Grants and the Newcomb Grant are a bit more lenient. Through my Newcomb Scholars program and through the grants page website I found out about these grants, but I had to write a lot of e-mails to see if I was actually eligible for some of them. I was shocked to get the money, but it really made me realize how many resources there are for students, so I will definitely be applying for more grants in the future. But the rest of the program I will largely be funding on my own.

That’s about it I suppose. Basically I would just suggest getting help from others when trying to find a summer internship or program. Talk to teachers or look at newsletters and list serves for ideas and opportunities and then reach out the friends, family and professionals to help bounce ideas and get suggestions of financing, cheap travel sites etc. I’ll try to write another post while I’m in country, but otherwise, I’ll write again in August. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments at mary.t.bryan@gmail.com.