How to apply for Ingenuity in Action Funding

Funding decisions for Ingenuity in Action are based on three guiding principles, and requests are prioritized based on Ingenuity in Action selection criteria.

Guiding Principles:

• Serving students from a range of majors/disciplines
• Supporting different types of experiences
• Serving underrepresented populations

Selection Criteria (prioritization in no particular order):

• Experience meets Ingenuity in Action requirements
• The student has not received previous funding from Cornell 
• The experience is critical for future education and/or career goals
• Merit will be considered in some cases for premier programs (GPA, interview, etc)
• Financial need
• Class year and time remaining to complete experiences
• Level of real world application
• Additional information gleaned from personal statement and/or interview
• Additional information gleaned from faculty/staff recommendation
• Timing of application

Expenses typically approved:

• Food
• Housing
• Transportation
• Professional certification costs (must give back to Cornell in some way)
• Conference attendance/participation fees (must be presenting)
• Supplies (considered on a case-by-case basis)

For a detailed example of how you might detail your expenses for reimbursement, visit our sample internship budget worksheet.

Expenses not generally approved:

• Technology
• Supplies provided by the employer, department, or opportunity
• Cost of certifications that do not contribute to the Cornell community
• Professional attire (exceptions may apply for uniforms)
• Conference attendance where you do not present research or findings - Student Senate does consider and fund some of these requests

If you have already received $5000 or more (or received funding for a similar type of experience through the Ingenuity in Action program), your request will be contingent upon the strength of your application and funding availability after considering candidates that meet the above criteria. An example of this might be a request to do an internship following a CSRI experience. The committee realizes that many professions require multiple high level hands-on experiences to be a competitive candidate for graduate programs and employment. These requests are seriously considered. 

Additional selection criteria may be used for established programs. You can learn more about selection criteria for these programs on their web pages.

• Berry Career Institute Internships
• Off-Campus Studies
• Cornell Summer Research Institute

For additional questions contact the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator. 

If you are participating in a for-credit internship, you can apply for funding at the same time you apply for academic credit through the InAct Portal.

In general, internship funding is reserved for those receiving academic credit, but exceptions have been made in rare instances. If you have a compelling reason to pursue an internship without getting academic credit, you can use the general Ingenuity in Action funding application. We encourage you to speak with the Berry Career Institute prior to submitting this application regarding your reasons for not pursuing credit.

The block plan at Cornell College allows for exciting opportunities to study off campus, and we want to help students have those experiences through different funding options. 

You can learn more about off-campus studies on their webpages, or you can jump directly to the funding application.

Cornell Summer Research Institute (CSRI) is a unique experience for you to assist a faculty member with their research for 8 weeks during the summer months. Funding which provides a $2,500 stipend and covers housing costs is automatically granted to those who are selected by CSRI participating faculty. 

If a CSRI experience is of interest to you, you will need to complete the CSRI application. On the application, you will indicate one to two summer projects that you would like to join. Faculty projects will generally be determined by February 1 and student applications will be due by March 1. Faculty will review applications to determine which students to invite to collaborate on their research. Before submitting an application, it is helpful to establish a connection with a faculty member to give them time to get to know you and assess your candidacy for a student research project. 

CSRI is a pre-approved experience for Ingenuity in Action, and all accepted students will be required to participate in the program.

Ingenuity in Action funding is available for a wide array of activities in addition to traditional experiential learning options, such as internships and off-campus study. Do you need to invest in art supplies for your independent project? Maybe you need to drive to another city to present your research findings at a conference. Whatever expenses you have related to your Ingenuity in Action activity, make sure to apply for funding so you can be considered for expense reimbursement. We encourage everyone to apply for consideration.