Welcome to UW Social Impact Internships

an experiential learning program from Omprakash & the University of Washington
 

 

Thank you for your interest in social impact internships with Omprakash!  Please register below to complete your enrollment in this program.

This program is open to all undergraduate and graduate UW students. It is designed to help students find socially-oriented volunteer internships — either abroad or at home — and supplement this service work with an affordable, accredited pathway of reflection and learning. The program is structured enough to give you a sense of direction, yet is expansive and adaptable. It can support your existing commitments or guide you towards exciting new opportunities for engagement.

Alongside their internships, students will engage in critical dialogue and reflection about the complexities of striving for justice while crossing differences of culture and power, and will create a series of digital storytelling posts that document their experiences through lenses informed by our course themes. 

This program runs in each academic quarter. In order to have ample time for planning their internships, students are required to register at least ~2 months in advance of the quarter in which they wish to participate (see timetable below). After registering, students receive ongoing support from Omprakash as they browse and apply for internships of their choosing. 

 

What Is This?


Omprakash is a global education nonprofit that has partnered with the University of Washington to help students connect with internship opportunities and deepen their learning and growth through shared dialogue and reflection. This program supports students as they independently browse and apply for volunteer social impact internships* abroad, and then offers mentorship, peer support, and academic credit in conjunction with their internship experience. If you're looking to take on an internship abroad, this is one of the most affordable options available.

*What do we mean by "social impact"? This is a good question! Generally speaking, this program is designed to help students get involved with issues pertaining to human and environmental well-being. This typically involves opportunities in fields like public health, education, sustainability, human rights, and economic development — but we intentionally take a wide-angle view of what "social impact" really means, and we believe that it is possible to bring a social impact perspective to any kind of volunteer or internship experience. This includes internships with nonprofits as well as opportunities in the private sector and public sector. Whatever your academic and professional interests may be, this program will help you reflect on how these interests intersect with broader questions about inequality, social change, and your own impact on others.

All program participants will receive guidance and support from an EdGE (Education through Global Engagement) Mentor and will engage in an EdGE online classroom to deepen their learning and reflection throughout the program. Each student will also create a series of multimedia blog posts that eventually form a Digital Portfolio that they can share with peers, faculty sponsors, and future employers.

Students have the opportunity to learn from and with their peers by potentially engaging in webinars and periodic discussion group calls to support community-building and critical reflection. At the completion of the program, students earn certificates in Critical Global Engagement and will receive academic credit for the successful completion of their internships and the academic program.

In short — if you're interested in deepening your learning outside the classroom, 'doing good' in the world, and affordably receiving academic credit for it, you're in the right place.

 

How Does It Work?

 

 

Before the academic quarter in which students will intern, participating students are expected to:

  • Independently search, apply, interview, and secure an internship with a social impact organization of their choosing outside the U.S., typically within the Omprakash Partner network, with the support of Omprakash admin;

  • Register to participate in the program through both Omprakash and the University of Washington Study Abroad office; and

  • Complete a series of pre-travel logistical tasks.

During the academic quarter in which students intern, participating students will:

  • Engage in an interactive multimedia online classroom;

  • Pursue and complete an independent volunteer social impact internship with an organization of their choosing; and

  • Engage in ongoing reflection, dialogue, and storytelling that culminates with the creation of a Digital Portfolio.

Please refer to the table below to determine the date by which you must register in order to participate in this program:

Term   Registration Deadline*     Program Start Date     Program End Date  
 Autumn Quarter 2026  July 15, 2026 September 30, 2026 December 18, 2026
 Winter Quarter 2027  November 1, 2026 January 4, 2027 March 19, 2027
 Spring Quarter 2027 January 31, 2027 March 29, 2027 June 11, 2027
 Summer Quarter 2027 April 15, 2027 June 21, 2027 August 20, 2027

 

Students who intern abroad are expected to intern full-time and are thus eligible to receive up to 12 credits through GEN ST 363: General Studies via UW Study Abroad. Students who intern abroad full-time will not be eligible to take other academic credits at the same time as engaging in this program.

Credits earned in this program can count towards your major as a capstone project (or other course), as determined by your academic advisor. There are many ways to make this program work for you!

You are able to participate in multiple academic quarters if you are interested by taking on multiple internships and/or continuing your internship across consecutive Academic Quarters. Please note you are responsible for paying the tuition & the study abroad fee for each term in which you participate.

The total cost of tuition for the program is $750 per quarter, and the program is eligible for UW financial aid. Tuition reductions are possible with demonstrated need.

The cost of going abroad varies by country and organization, but is always affordable — daily costs (including food, lodging, and local transport) range from roughly $10 to $60, with $30 per day being the average.  

 

Why Join This Program?
 

I am profoundly grateful for the opportunity to live and work within this community and for all the learning experiences I've gained. Through the University of Washington and Omprakash EdGE Course, I have been introduced to many important concepts. However, experiencing these concepts firsthand in Samara has allowed me to transition from theoretical understanding to a deeper, more heartfelt learning. Here's a look into past two months for me here!

- 2024 program participant

 

The EdGE platform is designed to encourage critical thinking about your past, present, and future. My favorite part was how it connected students from different fields of study, grade levels, and lived experiences to discuss the complexities of our world and the role life-long learning plays in staying informed and being proactive when facing challenges. Additionally, the mentorship and support from the Omprakash team was amazing! They guided us with phenomenal questions that made me think deeply throughout my 3 months in Nepal.

- 2024 program participant

 

 

Read more testimonials about EdGE...

 

 

Information Session

 

Please feel free to review the recording of an information session we hosted that answers the questions to some of the 'big picture' questions you may be asking about this program: check it out via this link!

 

 

How Do I Get Started?

 

 

Please register to join this program via Omprakash EdGE (below). Please note that you will also need to register with UW — but you will find more details inside EdGE once you register! Please reach out to Ethan Goldbach (ethan@omprakash.org) with any questions! 

 

Register below with Cohort Code: 

UW2026