CLIP: The Collegiate Leadership Internship Program

The Collegiate Leadership Internship Program (CLIP) is a selective, paid internship experience in New York City for college students to develop professional skills, explore their Jewish identity, shape their community, and connect with mentors and a cohort of values-driven peers. CLIP matches undergraduate students with engaging, substantive internships at Jewish nonprofits based in NYC.

Summer interns spend Monday through Thursday working full time at their internship placement, and full day Fridays in social seminars with their cohort. CLIP seminars are where the personal meets the professional: we ask big questions about professional life and leadership, learn tangible professional development skills, network with guest speakers, explore excursions throughout the city, and consider themes around Jewish identity. 

The summer 2025 cohort dates are June 6th, 2025-August 8th, 2025.

  • [Student] Application deadline (rolling admission and matching): 3/31/25

  • [Site] Intern Request Form deadline (early preferred; rolling matching): 3/31/25

  • Supervisor Orientation: 5/29/25 (10:30am - 12pm on Zoom)

  • Intern Orientation: 6/6/25 (9am - 4pm at the Bronfman Center)

  • Internship Dates: 6/9/25 - 8/7/25

  • Internship Schedule: 9am-5pm Monday through Thursday (unless otherwise determined with supervisor)

  • CLIP Seminars: weekly on Fridays from 6/6/25 - 8/8/25 from 9am - 4pm, excluding federal and Jewish holidays

  • Shabbaton Weekend Retreat: Date TBA

  • Closing Ceremony: 8/8/25 (11am-1pm at the Bronfman Center)

intern with CLIP 

We’re looking for students who are passionate about Jewish community and values-driven work. Apply now to start building relationships that will last a lifetime.

  • Interns spend full workdays Monday through Thursday at their job placements and Fridays 9am-4pm each week in meaningful seminars and workshops led by leaders in the NYC Jewish community, connecting with other interns in a cohort of 20 students with diverse Jewish backgrounds and identities. CLIP provides interns with mentorship, opportunities to develop competitive professional skills, and a cohort of talented and driven peers with whom to think and grow.

    Most internships are hybrid, while some are fully in-person or fully remote. Friday seminars are fully in-person.

  • CLIP is open to rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors from anywhere, at any school, with US citizenship. Applicants must commit to living within a commutable distance from New York City for the course of the program. We cannot assist students in finding housing.

    There is no fee to appy.

  • After applicants submit their application, the CLIP team reviews applications and reaches out about next steps. Selected applicants will have a first-round interview. Internship matches are based on the candidate’s interests and skills and the needs of partner organizations. If a candidate is a potential match for an available internship, they will be connected to the site supervisor for a second-round interview unique to that placement. Once the site supervisor and candidate mutually confirm the match, the intern signs a participation contract and receives information about next steps to get ready for the best few months of their lives!

  • On Fridays, the CLIP cohort meets to dive into topics of professional development, leadership development, and Jewish identity exploration. Past topics have included: 

    • Personality and communication styles in the workplace

    • Mission, vision, values, and crafting a personal narrative

    • Intersections of identity in the Jewish community

    • Inclusivity, belonging, and community building

    • Design thinking and innovative problem solving

    • Managing up and building a team

    • Acing the job market: how to write a resume, cover letter, and network

    • Making your money work at work 

    • Interns are encouraged to take an active role in co-leading and co-facilitating a number of these sessions throughout the program.

  • The CLIP Shabbaton is our cohort retreat weekend. The cohort will spend Friday through Sunday at a retreat center outside of the city connecting with nature, strengthening friendships and community, and exploring Shabbat practices and Jewish thought about rest. It’s a weekend packed with fun, social and reflective programming with some built-in free time for downtime and personal exploration.

    Transportation by coach bus, retreat center lodging, and all meals are covered by CLIP. Participants will stay in basic cabin bunkbed rooms with 2-3 interns per room. We will depart from the Bronfman Center on Friday morning be dropped off at the Bronfman Center on Sunday in early afternoon. 

    Participants are encouraged to practice their own preferred Shabbat observance while exploring new practices in a pluralistic environment. Shabbat programming will be Shomer Shabbat friendly. All meals will be Kosher. Dietary needs can be accommodated. All participants are expected to attend.

  • CLIP strives to cultivate a cohort of talented individuals representative of the diversity and intersectionality of the Jewish community and invites applicants from all Jewish identities and backgrounds.

  • At the end of the program, interns are paid a $3,000 stipend for their work through direct deposit or check. This stipend is dependent on interns meeting all of the goals set in their signed contract. 

have questions? Reach out to Mel Friedel at mel.friedel@nyu.edu.

host a CLIP intern

For more than 30 years, CLIP has matched high potential students with up-and-coming and established Jewish organizations. Yours should be next.

  • step 1 – Submit an intern request form for your organization proposing an internship. This allows us to create a job profile to share with candidates.

    step 2 – We conduct first-round interviews with student applicants, and if we identify a potential match, we connect the student to the organization for a second-round interview. Interviews will take place on a rolling basis with a quick turnaround time.

    step 3 – If the student and the organization both agree on the match after the interview, the placement is confirmed! Once all interns are matched, any unmatched placements will be notified.

    step 4 – Confirmed sites are asked to cover a portion of their intern's cost on a sliding scale from $500 to $1,500. We do not want cost to be prohibitive. Read more about site financial contribution under "what is the cost to placement sites?" below.

  • We select students who are talented, skilled, and passionate about Jewish community work. When thinking of an internship project, dream big! Administrative work that is unrelated to the intern’s project should make up no more than 25% of an intern’s role. Past projects include:

    • Social media and marketing strategy and implementation

    • Event planning

    • Video editing and graphic design

    • Financial reporting and analysis

    • Donor research, prospecting, and cultivation

    • Curriculum and content development

    • Data management and analysis

    • Writing and content development

    • The deadline to submit a request for a summer intern is March 31, 2025. Early submissions are preferred, as interns are matched on a rolling basis during the application period.

    • Site supervisors attend a virtual orientation before the semester begins: Thursday, May 29 from 10:30am-12pm on Zoom.

    • Interns begin with a cohort orientation on June 6th, 2025 at the Bronfman Center.

    • Internships run from June 9th to August 7th, 2025.

    • CLIP seminars take place in person on Fridays from 9am-4pm; interns do not report to work during this time.

    • The program concludes with a Closing Ceremony on Friday, August 8th from 11am-1pm at the Bronfman Center. Supervisors and other partner organization members are invited to attend!

  • We ask that confirmed placement sites cover a portion of the direct cost of their intern on a sliding scale from $500 to $1,500 (per intern hosted).

    Direct costs amount to $6,000 per intern. Site contribution covers your intern's participation in the Shabbaton at Isabella Freedman Retreat Center (including lodging, meals, programming, and transportation). The cohort spends Friday through Sunday making lifelong friendships and connecting with the spirit of Shabbat.

    We do not want cost to be prohibitive, and we encourage you to request an intern regardless of your organization's ability to contribute. Intern requests will not be prioritized based on ability to contribute. We have a limited fund for sites who are unable to contribute on this sliding scale. Please specify your need for accommodation in the site application form.

    We acknowledge that this is the first time in recent years that we are requesting financial contributions from placement sites, and we appreciate your adaptive partnership as CLIP transitions into a sustainable model for the future.

 

interested in hosting an intern in the future? Reach out to Mel Friedel at mel.friedel@nyu.edu.