Undergraduate Career Information
Undergraduate Opportunities for Funding
PennSEM
Wharton’s Program for Social Impact provides funding for summer undergraduate internships that are identified and managed in cooperation with The Penn Social Entrepreneurship Mentoring Program (PennSEM), which was established to provide undergraduates with a formal opportunity to explore the possibility of pursuing a career as a social entrepreneur. The Program is meant to complement the existing opportunities for undergraduate students to apply their skills in a consultative capacity to non-profit organizations and social enterprises. These internships are with a variety of social enterprises both nationally and globally. Please check the PennSEM site for additional information about the process and participating organizations: http://www.pennsem.org.
Thanks to the support of the Levy Fund, students receive funding for two-month summer internships with leading social enterprise organizations around the world.
The internships are designed to create value for the students, the participating organizations, and the Wharton and Penn community. To this end, each internship involves 1) substantial mentoring for the student from the founder or a senior leader of the organization, 2) a project that leverages the student's skills and academic background to benefit the organization, and 3) writing a case study for purposes of research and knowledge generation. Integral to the success of the Program has been the active involvement of the student leaders in every aspect of the Program's establishment and operation. We believe this combination of features helps to distinguish PennSEM as a co-curricular activity.
Undergraduate Research and Scholars Program (including SPUR & SIRE)
Additionaly, through the Undergraduate Research and Scholars program, Wharton also offers summer research internships through SPUR (Summer Program for Undergraduate Research) and SIRE (Social Impact Research Experience).
Wharton Summer Program for Undergraduate Research (Wharton SPUR): Wharton SPUR is a 10-week residential program to support the research and scholarly work of Wharton undergraduates who just finished their freshman or sophomore year. The program involves conducting a research project under the guidance of a professor, written and oral presentations, and weekly meetings as a community of scholars to hear faculty research presentations. SPUR provides participants with University housing and a $3,000 stipend. More info>>
Wharton Social Impact Research Experience (Wharton SIRE): Wharton SIRE is a program that supports the summer research activities of rising juniors and seniors on a topic that promotes both economic and social value (i.e., has a social impact component). Projects can be carried out either internationally or domestically. SIRE provides participants with a $3,000 stipend and will reimburse approved research-related expenses up to another $3,000. Funded research projects will culminate in written and oral presentations. More info>>
Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships (CURF) Grants. More info>>
CURF Summer Opportunities. More info>>
Research Assistantships. More info>>