Established in 2015, the Social Impact Internship Fund at the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management provides funding to Johnson MBA students who take a low- or no-compensation summer internship directly involved in social or environmental impact. Administered by the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise (CSGE), the fund supports students seeking internship opportunities in organizations dedicated to addressing critical social and environmental challenges. For a complete list of eligible organizations, application deadlines and more, visit CSGE's internship information page.
Funding for the Social Impact Internship Fund is made possible by the generosity of fellow Johnson students and alumni. If you would like to support students who have a passion to tackle real global challenges, please visit HERE to make a gift.
This fascinating journey would have been impossible without the invaluable support of the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management, including the Social Impact Internship Fund through the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise and Johnson’s Career Management Center. The fund helped provide the financial and organizational support that I needed to succeed at Quantum Risk Analytics. - Marcus Le, MBA 2024
Summer 2024
During Guru Bhardwaj's MBA 2025 internship with Brahmbhatt Architects, he found himself at the intersection of social impact, technological innovation, growth, and financial sustainability. His role was multifaceted, involving market research, securing financing, and implementing strategic growth initiatives, all while exploring how technology could be leveraged to optimize costs and improve project feasibility. Read more about Guru's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Financial inclusion is becoming increasingly challenging, especially for students managing finances while pursuing academic goals. Over the summer, Ain Razali, MBA 2025 had the opportunity to work on building a venture of my own, SmartFin, to address this issue. Read more about Ain's experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Summer 2023
Kenya currently boasts one of East Africa’s most thriving markets, accompanied by rapid urbanization. China experienced a similar process two decades ago. During Yuchan Wang's, MBA 2024 internship with the United Nations in the summer of 2023, this phenomenon piqued her curiosity and led her to explore the lives of ordinary people amidst this rapid urbanization. Read more about Yuchan's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
What is the next existential threat lurking around the corner? In a post-pandemic world, people have become all too familiar with the term “existential risk.” With COVID-19 a mere blip on the radar, it was a wakeup call to humanity about our vulnerability to unforeseen dangers. Marcus Le's MBA 2024 journey at Quantum Risk Analytics was about just that: uncovering the secrets behind the next big peril and creating strategies to minimize its impact. Read more about Marcus' internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Summer 2022
Last summer, Masahiro Yoshida MBA '23 had the good fortune to work for Ohayo Valley, an early-stage food tech startup focused on creating cell-cultured Wagyu meat, a high-end type of Japanese beef that is known for its white specks of fat marbled throughout the meat. It was exciting to work at a startup that could have significant environmental impact by eliminating the need to raise animals for food thus using significantly less land and water, emitting fewer greenhouse gases, and reducing agriculture-related pollution. Read more about Masahiro's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Summer 2021
Duncan Lee MBA '22 came to Cornell University from South Korea with a background in sustainability consulting. His internship with AccountAbility enabled him to grow in the NY business environment. The Social Impact Internship Fund enabled Duncan to commute between Ithaca and Madison Avenue with a place to stay in New York for his internship and build valuable experiences. Since graduation Duncan has returned to AccountAbility as a Manager for the firm. Read more about Duncan's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Tony Tsao MBA '22 arrived at Cornell with a background of public accounting and financial services in Taiwan. During his internship, he joined Ashoka’s newly created Entrepreneur-to-Entrepreneur division, headquartered in Washington, D.C. to help founders of social projects tackle problems across the world. After graduating from JGSM Tony took a position as a consultant with Ernst & Young Parthenon. Read more about Tony's internship experience on Johnson Business Feed.
Yimi Zhao MBA ’22 carried a background in the NYC venture capital market prior to Cornell. With her passion for health technology, impact investment, and the public sector, she landed an internship with Hampstead Park Capital Management, financing the shift from traditional garbage trucks to greener, lighter, and cheaper electrical garbage trucks in New England. The Social Impact Internship Fund enabled Yimi to learn more about the emerging electric vehicle market than she could have in the classroom. Today she works as a Sr. Program Manager at Amazon Hub in Network and Business Planning. Read more about Yimi's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
During Pedro Tucci's MBA '23 time in Brazil last summer, he noticed a large lack of diversity in the financial sector. Most employees came from rich backgrounds and almost all were men. But groups promoting equality and inclusivity exist in the venture capital sphere, such as Antler, a global, early-stage venture capital firm. Through the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management and the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise (CSGE), I was awarded the Social Impact Internship Fund (SIIF) and began to pursue my dream of becoming a venture capitalist. Read more about Pedro's internship experience on Johnson's Business Feed.
Summer 2020
- Anshul Bakhda, MBA '21 - Solar power systems for tropical resorts
- Amanda Srishima, MBA '21 - Government of Indonesia
- Rahul Singh, MBA '21 - Hospitalist practice in Morgantown, West Virginia
Summer 2019
- Kelsey Cheng, MBA '20 - FreshDirect & FoodKick
- Nikunj Raithatha, MBA '20 - Sims Metal Management
- Feam Supinanon, MBA '20 - United Nations
Summer 2018
- Harrison Jobe, MBA '19 - NPR
- Benjamin Kalter, MBA '19 - Nuveen
- Keith Liao, MBA '19 - National Park Service
Summer 2017
- Antony Wolfe-Cowen, MBA '18 - charity:water
- Amanda Kamarck, MBA '18 - Maternity Care Coalition
- André Hook, MBA/MHA '18 - Cleveland Clinic
- Shantanu Naidu, MBA '18 - Tata Trusts