Host an Internship

There is no one “typical” Cal Energy Corps host. We work towards providing students with a wide range of opportunities from across the globe. Successful Cal Energy Corps partnerships usually involve climate and/or energy research, policy, technology, or business in both public and private sectors. The best way to find out if your organization is a good fit for Cal Energy Corps is to directly get in touch with us. We look for a diverse range of partners to provide students with unique opportunities.

Our 2011 pilot program included positions focused on the design and deployment of wind turbines in rural villages, the analysis of low-carbon growth strategies, and the development of the next generation of thin-solar cells. Recent programs continue to offer a wide variety of exciting projects – from developing more efficient cook stoves in costal Nicaraguan villages, to analyzing the global market for solar PV in China, to turning waste into biodiesel in Ghana.

Eligible applicants to the Cal Energy Corps are highly motivated UC Berkeley undergraduates in good academic standing, from a wide range of disciplines and majors.
Interested students submit an application form, 3-page statement of purpose, academic transcript, and letter of recommendation from a UC Berkeley faculty member or approved supervisor, as well as placement preference form.

An interdisciplinary selection committee chooses participants on the basis of merit and matches each internship opportunity with qualified applicants. Upon agreement with respective program partners, the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) will notify selected students.

Internship placements are typically 8-10 weeks long and take place over the summer (between mid-May to mid-August).

1. Offer one or more full time placements for selected intern(s).
2. Assign a supervisor that can provide direct mentorship to the intern and serve as a communications liaison between the organization and CITRIS over the course of the internship selection process.
3. Cover salary costs ($680/week for the duration of the internship). For international placements, provide a travel allowance and help with housing arrangements. The Cal Energy Corps program provides students with housing for overseas placements and provides a weekly stipend of $680 for the duration of all internships. CITRIS and Cal Energy Corps programs are non-profit - any gifts, including those that directly support an internship placement, are entirely tax-deductible. 

The Cal Energy Corps offers a competitive salary in order to attract the best and brightest of our students to the program. We want to ensure that all students, regardless of their financial means, can participate in the program. This helps us to base our selections on the merit of the candidate alone. However, we understand that non-profit organizations may not able to cover as much of the costs as for-profit companies. We are willing to work with and are dedicated in supporting program partners in finding external funding for invaluable internship placements.

We appreciate your support for the Cal Energy Corps program. Please visit our Donate page to learn more about other ways of supporting the program.

Thank you for your interest! Please contact calenergycorps@berkeley.edu for further information. It would be helpful if you could provide a brief description of the nature of the internship placement, the ideal time frame as well, as the major field of study and experience desired of the candidate(s) who would be placed with your firm/organization.