What is the Professional Development Fund?

Through the Professional Development Fund, A&S Career Development provides funding to support or supplement the career development needs of undergraduate students with financial need. Students are eligible to apply for no more than a total two professional development requests per academic year. For example, a student may apply to receive funding for an interview suit AND travel to a graduate/professional school interview. Students may receive funding for multiple graduate school interviews, but would not be eligible to receive funding for conference attendance. Students can only receive funding for Business Attire one time during their undergraduate career at Cornell.

The A&S Career Development staff reserve the right to deny students who abuse this funding support. 

How does funding work?

• Student submits application, including a budget form with anticipated costs.
• Applications are reviewed, and if approved the student will be asked to sign and return a grant contract.
• Funding will be given in the form of a travel grant, meaning that the student is responsible for making and paying for their own travel arrangements, reservations, and other expenditures. The grant will help to offset some or all of the costs.
• Once a signed contract is received, the request for funds will be submitted to Financial Aid (please allow at least 2 weeks for processing)
• Once processed by Financial Aid, the student will receive a reimbursement check for the sum of the grant awarded. 
  • Students may set up direct deposit to have the funds dispersed directly into their account.

To allow for application and funding processing time, we recommend applying at least 3 weeks in advance of when you need to begin paying for your professional development opportunity. As a note: Financial Aid asks for at least 2 weeks for funding to process and be dispered to the student. Arrival of funds is contingent upon processing at Financial Aid. The A&S Career Development office has no ability to expedite funding. We appreciate your patience in the processing of your check.

Funding Eligibility

Students must meet the following eligibility criteria in order to apply for funding:

• Currently enrolled, matriculated undergraduate student in a degree-granting program in the College of Arts & Sciences.
• Receiving financial aid from Cornell University.
• Low-income (as defined by the College/Financial Aid) or first-generation student
• In the pursuit of a professional opportunity; students are no longer eligible once they have accepted an offer from a job/internship opportunity or graduate/professional school.

Students are NOT eligible to apply for funding if:

• They have an OCR violation.
• They are on a leave of absence.
• They are currently studying abroad.
• They are away from campus for Cornell in Washington, or similar program.
• They have graduated (are considered an alum).

Funding Eligibility and Priority Details:

• Students within a 100-mile radius of the destination are not eligible for overnight expenses. Transportation may be reimbursable.  
• Only domestic travel is eligible. Students traveling from international locations may be eligible to receive hotel accommodations and domestic transportation support, but will not receive funding for international travel expenses. 
• Priority will be given to seniors, then juniors, then sophomores, then first year students.
• Students with the highest financial need are given preference. Please note there is a space on the application to indicate any individual or family factors affecting your need that may not be reflected in your financial aid package.

Funding Categories

Students can apply to receive funding to support the following career development pursuits:

TRAVEL TO INTERVIEWS FOR INTERNSHIP OR FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT

The Fund will support transportation to/from the interview, checked bag fees (if applicable), transportation to/from the airport, per diem meal rates, and lodging costs. Interviews must be in the US (50 states plus District of Columbia). 

Students may apply for funding to support up to 2 internship/job interviews per academic year preferably together in one application. 

TRAVEL TO GRADUATE/PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL INTERVIEWS OR ACCEPTED STUDENT DAYS

The Fund will support transportation to/from the interview, checked bag fees (if applicable), transportation to/from the airport, per diem meal rates, and lodging costs. Interviews must be in the US (50 states plus District of Columbia). 

Students may apply for funding to support up to 2 interviews per academic year preferably together in one application. (Students applying to medical school may receive funding to attend up to 8 interviews per academic year.) Travel is only valid for interviews or accepted student days, and does not cover prospective student visits. If a visit is funded by a school, then students are not eligible for funding. 

PURCHASE OF professional clothing

The Fund will provide up to $300 in funding for students who have not secured a job/internship or who are pursuing admission to graduate/professional school to purchase professional clothing. Recommended items include: 1 business professional suit, which includes a blazer and matching bottom (dress pants or skirt), button down shirt or blouse, tie (if applicable), belt, pantyhose, dress shoes, and/or professional bag. The cost of alterations is allowed, as long as it does not exceed the funded amount. Awardees are not allowed to purchase casual/business casual attire which includes, dresses, jeans, polo shirts, t-shirts, accessories, undergarments, work boots, uniforms, lab attire, or casual work attire.

Note: Requests for professional clothing funding will be granted to students one time during their undergraduate career.

CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE

Students may apply for funding to attend a professional conference related to their career interests. Funding will only be provided towards conferences where there is an opportunity to interview, present research/poster, or meet with employers. The Fund will support conference fees, per diem meal rates, transportation to/from the interview, checked bag fees, transportation to/from the airport and lodging costs (lodging only covered is travelling from >100 miles). The Fund will only cover meals not included in the cost of conference attendance. 

Students may apply to attend 1 conference per academic year. Conferences must be in the US (50 states plus District of Columbia).

Conferences/Summits that are not eligible include: Forbes Under 30 Summit and Grace Hopper

Other funding categories

Some other cases that the Professional Development Fund might cover include: Graduate/professional school test prep courses, graduate/professional school admissions test fee (LSAT, MCAT, GRE), graduate/professional school application fees.

About the Application

Apply to the Professional Development Fund

Required Application Materials

• Respond to two (2) short essay questions:
  • In as much detail as possible, please describe your career interests and goals. (If you are still exploring, please share about where you are in that process) 
  • How will receiving this funding contribute to furthering your career development? Be specific about the career outcomes and/or benefits to you.
  • Describe your financial circumstances that will help us understand your funding needs
• Resume - with your name and email redacted.
• Budget detailing funding needs.
• Most recent Financial Aid Award Summary (available to download on Student Center)

What is the Application Review Committee Seeking?

• A clear connection between the funding request and your career goals. Questions to consider: What are your career goals? How will receiving funding for this request advance your career?  How will this funding help you to obtain an internship, job, or graduate school opportunity? 
• An accurate and clear description of your financial circumstances that have led you to apply for funding. Financial need is the primary factor when reviewing applications. You must submit your financial aid letter from the Student center. The response to the second short essay question will play a significant role in determining eligibility for funding for students who do not receive financial aid.
• A funding request that fits the purpose of the Professional Development Fund. The Professional Development Fund is for career related purposes only. Applications for personal needs or student activities will not be considered.
• Opportunities that cannot be supported through other existing funds on or off campus. Several offices and schools on campus offer funding to support undergraduate professional development needs. The review committee may refer an applicant to one of these resources if it is a more appropriate fit for the funding request. Conversely, if it is determined that an application request has been funded through an alternate source, the application will be declined.
• Enough time to review and process funding. Applications that fall outside of our timeline for application review may be submitted, however, we cannot guarantee that the application is able to be processed with a shortened timeline.