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Division of Academic and Student Affairs 
Career Development Center

SECU Public Fellows Internship Program

Are you a student interested in volunteering this summer but need to secure a paid opportunity? Thanks to a generous grant from the State Employees Credit Union Foundation, the Career Development Center can provide supplemental payment for your summer internship opportunity. Have an organization that you’re passionate about? Reach out to your dream organization, create an internship description that fits your career goals and apply to have it be a paid summer internship. 

Funding is available for 20 students every summer.

One of the copper wolves at Wolf Plaza. Photo by Becky Kirkland.

The SECU Public Fellows Internship Program connects undergraduate students to meaningful summer internships. This internship program has been designed to help connect non-profit and government agencies with talented NC State students. Students who are interested in becoming SECU Public Fellows interns should submit their proposed summer opportunity to the Career Development Center. Students are paid a stipend of $5,000 during the summer through this program.

If you would like to know more about the SECU Public Fellows program, please email program coordinator Erin O’Neill at emoneill@ncsu.edu. The priority application deadline is March 3 and applications will be accepted through March 14.

The SECU Public Fellows Internship Program will be open to students from all majors.

Students MUST meet the following eligibility criteria: 

  • Be an undergraduate student. Be enrolled as a full-time student. Be returning to campus in fall 2025. 
  • Be a North Carolina resident.
  • Have not previously participated in NC State’s SECU Public Fellows Internship Program.
  • Must not be a director, employee, or family member of a director or employee of SECU or SECU Foundation.
  • Agency must be located in North Carolina and serve North Carolina communities.
  • Priority will be given to students from rural counties or pursuing opportunities in rural counties.

Students must agree to the following requirements: 

  • Attend the orientation session in April 2025 (or attend a makeup virtual session)
  • Complete a post-internship survey. 
  • Present on their internship experience and learnings at an on campus poster session.
  • Engage in a professional development data project with assistance from the Career Development Center and Data Science Academy
  • Sign an internship participation agreement.

Students must secure their own housing arrangements.

Employer Requirement

Organizations that agree to host a student for the summer must agree to the following criteria:

  • Sign an employer agreement form committing your participation in the SECU Public Fellows Program for the duration of the internship.
  • Be available via email or phone call with the Employer Relations Coordinator throughout the summer to check-in and provide updates.
  • Promote the mission of this program by providing a nurturing and supportive environment for the student participant to grow professionally.
  • Fill out a feedback form at the end of the summer for the Career Development Center’s records and improvement purposes.

Example Agencies

*Some organizations that would qualify for the SECU grant, in most cases an organization will not have an internship posted, but some may have an established internship program.

Visit this website to search for non-profits in North Carolina:

https://www.ncnonprofits.org/connect/directory

Example Intern Projects

  • Research
  • Community Outreach
  • Public Policy
  • Communications/Social Media
  • Fundraising
  • Direct Client Services (ex: tutoring and mentoring)

The Career Development Center and NC State are not responsible for designing the internship experience or assigning projects to students.