Budget

There are a number of variables that you will need to pin down in order to generate an accurate budget for any one internship project. These include the following:

  • What will the hourly pay rate be for interns?

The Harvard Green Campus Initiative (HGCI) has set hourly rates at $12 to $17 depending on the experience of the student. Most HGCI internships pay $13 per hour.

  • How many hours per week will you have the intern work and for how many weeks?

The HGCI runs internships with different hours and durations, depending upon the student’s needs, the project's needs and the budget.

  • Can you recruit a student that is eligible for Federal Work Study Program?

This can cover up to 70 percent of your student salary costs.

  • Do you have to pay for the use of space, computer, phone, etc.? If so, what will it all cost?
  • Does your department require overhead.

The HGCI now sets aside 15 percent of any internship budget for an overhead contribution.

  • Will you be including the cost of the student internship program (SIP) management and administration time in the budget?

The HGCI typically recoups some proportion of the SIP management costs by adding $1,000 to $2,000 to the budget for each internship project.

  • Will you be including any funding for training, travel and website development?

The HGCI typically does not include money for training and travel, however it does include a contribution to website development so that the internship project details and products can be made available online.

To avoid surprises, make sure you consider all possible expenses when setting up your budget. Especially remember to include overhead, which covers the background costs of running an externally funded project like an internship. These costs include rent, utilities, administrative support and the time of campus employees who are indirectly involved in the project. In total, the HGCI generally budgets around $8,000 in total to run an internship for 300 to 400 hours during the three-month summer period.

Budgetary shortfalls that result from not considering all the key expenses will put you in a touchy situation and could jeopardize your program efforts. It can be wise to slightly overestimate your needs when presenting an initial budget to your potential sponsors. They will likely try to talk you down and you need to be sure that you can cover the unexpected costs that are sure to arise. Regardless of your bottom line, be sure that you can offer the value in services that your sponsor expects because this will ensure a positive working relationship.