Inspiring Growth and Impact Through Internships
Over the past three years, Think Together has opened its doors to college students through its innovative paid internship program that gives aspiring young professionals opportunities to gain real-world experience in fields such as business, marketing, program design, and many more.
Since 2022, 15 college students have participated in the internship program and five interns have transitioned into full-time roles, demonstrating the program’s success and Think Together’s reach beyond K-12 students. Interns gain on-the-job skills and witness the impactful work being done across California for expanded learning programs.
Much of the program’s growing impact has been due to Think Together’s partnership with universities like California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), and University of California, Riverside (UCR) to bring this advantage directly to college students.
CSUF has been a key partner for Think Together in developing a strategic plan to create more job and volunteer opportunities for young professionals in the expanded learning field. Think Together relaunched the program with CSUF in 2022, and since then internship applications have steadily increased, reaching 200 applicants in 2023. Conversion rates from intern to full-time positions have increased from 40% in 2023 to 50% in 2024.
One of the interns who secured a full-time position was Alexis Cruzé, who is now a Marketing and Communications Associate within the internal communications team and shared that her internship proved to be invaluable as a young professional.
“Think Together’s internship was not just a program for experience but was a launching pad for my career in communications and the education world. As a young professional, internships can sometimes be busy work but Think Together’s internship nurtures its interns with the same care as students enrolled in their program,” said Alexis. “I was able to look up to leadership, learn to count on my peers, and recognize how important values are to a company.”
Think Together’s Marketing and Communications Department led the initial rollout of the relaunched internship program, which proved successful as three interns were hired for part-time roles in 2023 and later transitioned into full-time positions within their team.
Other departments, like Training and Development, also experienced firsthand the value and success interns brought to their team. The department supervisor, Ayodele Coker, welcomed an intern who majored in linguistic studies onto her team and noted the vital experience it was to have someone within that field when creating lesson plans for students.
“Having an intern was the most amazing thing ever. They brought high-level dedication, initiative, and adaptability that made a meaningful impact on our work. Our intern played a key role in converting our SIPPS curriculum into grab and go lesson plans, making it easier for program staff to implement structured literacy instruction.”
Victoria Beltran, who interned under Coker’s guidance, shared how it felt to work within Think Together’s environment and said it helped her realize that education and linguistics can seamlessly mesh.
“You can tell especially with Think Together that the people who are here, they not only care what they’re doing and love what they’re doing but they are truly passionate and outspoken about students in the classroom and outside of the classroom,” said Victoria. “I left this internship with a lot more possible job opportunities than I thought were imaginable.”
Not only are Think Together interns able to “test drive” jobs they might have their eye set on after graduation, but they are also able to see what having a career within the nonprofit sector looks like and the values that come with it.
“Think Together creates a unique experience for students looking for internships,” said Elena Bosch, Think Together’s Director of Communications. “In my department, interns will get hands-on experience creating content for social media, writing blogs, supporting email campaigns, and conducting interviews.”
Think Together’s internship program has fostered career pathways that create a pipeline for students at local colleges to gain meaningful work experience and strong partnership relationships with universities like CSUF to create opportunities for students.
Think Together plans to continue the internship program and has expanded its reach to other partnerships with local universities like California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly), and University of California, Irvine (UCI), to further diversify the talent pool.
If you are interested in gaining experience in the nonprofit sector and/or expanded learning field, please visit our careers page for open internship roles.
