Externships

Owl Edge Externships are now live! For the full overview of all externships, please see our list here.

About the Owl Edge Externship Program

The Owl Edge Externship Program offers Rice University students the opportunity to explore different careers and industries through short-term, hands-on learning experiences. These externships are typically one to three days during your winter and spring breaks. By shadowing Rice alumni and other professionals, students can better understand potential career paths, make valuable connections, and enhance their career development. To participate all students who match will be asked to sign a waiver and complete short orientation modules.

Sometimes, the Owl Edge Externship Program can provide limited travel support to qualified students. Please read on for more information on the Owl Edge Externship Travel Fund.

Important Winter Externship Dates

• Winter Externship Applications Open: Wednesday, October 9th, 2024

• Winter Externship Applications Close: Wednesday, October 23rd, 2024

• Winter Matching Process: October 24th and 25th, 2024

• Winter Externship Match Notifications: Between October 28th & November 4th, 2024

• Winter Externship Dates: December 21st - January 12th, 2025

Important Spring Externship Dates

• Spring Externship Applications Open: Wednesday, January 15th, 2025

• Spring Externship Applications Close: Wednesday, January 29th, 2025

• Spring Matching Process: January 30th & 31st, 2025

• Spring Match Notification: Between February 3rd & February 10th, 2025

• Spring Externship Dates: March 15th - March 23rd, 2025

How to Apply for an Owl Edge Externship

Browse, select, and rank top choices

When externships open for applications we encourage you to browse our full selection of externships. You should identify a handful (3-5) of opportunities that interest you and rank them from one to five. One is your most sought-after externship, and five is one you are still interested in doing but may not be your top choice.

Gather application materials

After selecting your short list of externships and ranking them in order of preference 1-5, you should gather your resume (a high school resume will do for freshman students) and begin writing your paragraphs of interest. Each paragraph should respond to this prompt - "Why are you interested in this particular externship?"

• Your resume should follow our undergraduate resume guide. You can make an appointment with our career counselors to review your resume via rice.12twenty.com or via our virtual drop-in calendar here. We will also host our Owl Edge Externship Information Session on October 16th, 2024 - RSVP here.
• Your paragraphs of interest should be tailored for each externship you apply to. Your paragraphs can be submitted in one of two ways. 1.) You can submit a unique paragraph of interest to each externship application in PDF. 2.) You can submit a PDF that features each of your paragraphs of interest in rank order (1-5) and should feature the name of the externship you applying to above its respective paragraph. You can use this PDF document for each of your externship applications. Students must write unique paragraphs of interest for each externship. For an example, click here.

Submit your applications

Make sure to submit an application to each of the externships that interest you, we must receive your application to be considered. Our office reads and ranks every application and uses a matching algorithm to facilitate the matching process. Please see the important dates section for an idea of when you should hear back from us with your match notification.

Owl Edge Externship Travel Funding

The Owl Edge Externship Program generally does not provide funding for transportation to in-person externship experiences. However, we have a separate application for students interested in applying for travel funds or vouchers to complete their in-person externships. To be considered for travel funding, you must submit a separate application for each externship you seek funding for.

Why Participate in an Externship?

Participating in an externship offers students a varitey of benefits:

• Career Exploration: Gain insights into different careers by shadowing professionals and conducting your own informational interviews with our volunteers. They can provide insights into their unique career journey and tell you more about a typical workday in their industry.
• Networking: Start building connections with Rice alumni and professionals who can provide valuable guidance, mentorship, and career advice. Don't believe networking is important for your career? Read this.
• Skill Development: Learn and develop professional skills that will benefit your career journey, including communication, problem-solving, workplace etiquette, and teamwork.
• Informed Decision-Making: Use the externship experience to make more informed choices about your career path, internships, or academic focus.

Externships highlight a “typical” workday, but shadowing takes on various formats. Activities might include:

• Shadow professionals as they perform their daily tasks
• Participate in informational interviews to learn more about an industry and career opportunities.
• Attend meetings and observe workplace interactions.
• Engage in hands-on projects or assignments related to the field.
• Receive mentorship and advice from alumni and industry experts.
• Observe client/customer interactions
• Visit with the HR Department and/or recruiters
• Meet with the externship host and their colleagues to learn about their job responsibilities
• Tour of the facility

Student Testimonials

"I hoped that this externship would give me more knowledge about how to further my career, and it did. I came out of the externship with increased excitement and interest in my writing career and my English/Creative Writing major at Rice."

"The architecture externship was particularly interesting to me as it was with a non-profit firm. Learning about non-profit architecture firms really helped me develop more of a direction with my architectural interests."

My host was absolutely fantastic and connected me with about 10 other people in HR, all of whom I had a chance to talk to in the past week. I think I initially thought of HR as just an "office job" where there was little flexibility or opportunity for growth, but this externship proved me wrong on both counts."

"The most significant thing I learned from this experience is that getting a job right out of college may not be a straight path from choosing your major to getting hired; your major doesn't have to exactly coincide with your job, you just have to show the skills."

“The Owl Edge Externship was a great experience. It opened my eyes to the work environment. I met a lot of people and now have a better understanding of what goes on inside a corporation.”

FAQs About the Owl Edge Externship Program

What is the difference between an internship and an externship?

An externship is an unpaid short-term job shadowing opportunity intended to be a learning experience where students ask questions to explore their career options externships. An internship lasts for extended periods and is usually structured in a more 9-5 setting with more hands-on work to be completed.

How long will my externship last?

The externship host determines the length of an externship, but it will typically be one-half day to three days (or a shorter duration if virtual). Some hosts will meet with students multiple times in the semester (typically in spring), but that is not the expectation. Please be sure to consider your availability when applying to each externship.

Is housing/transportation provided?

No, you are responsible for any travel expenses. Please note that campus housing is not available during Winter Break. Limited travel funding may be available for a few students - instructions will be included in each posting, if available.

Where are externships?

Since this program’s inception (in 2015), approximately 75% of externships have been offered throughout Texas (when in person). That means opportunities do exist across the country (and even internationally). We encourage students to think about where they will be during the break and explore opportunities near that city (since students are responsible for travel expenses). Or, if students have friends and/or family in a different city, look for an opportunity there. Multiple virtual options allow students to connect from anywhere with stable wifi.

Who is eligible to apply?

While the program is geared towards Freshmen and Sophomores, all class levels may apply. Priority goes to underclassmen. Students from all majors are encouraged to participate. We also allow students still exploring career paths to participate multiple times throughout their academic experience.

Don’t see something you are interested in (or didn’t get matched)?

Keep an open mind about opportunities and consider postings that might not be an exact match for what you’re looking for but might capture your interest. While the CCD team members try to make the best possible matches based on indicated application preferences and an algorithm to promote fairness, submitting your application does not guarantee a match with an Owl Edge host. If unmatched, the CCD will help facilitate a connection outside the program when possible. If you can’t find an externship of interest, contact an alum and create your own externship/job shadowing experience. Sallyportal and LinkedIn are great places to start. We are happy to help you craft outreach communication to make this happen.

Questions?

Contact externships@rice.edu