Maroon and Gold Network Projects

The Alumni Association created the Maroon and Gold Network as a free, online platform for career advice, networking, and mentorship for all University of Minnesota students, alumni, faculty, and staff. Students can search the network and find alumni to reach out for career advice and informational interviews. Alumni can sign up to give back as a guide for students and seek out alumni on the platform for advice that helps their own career. Creating an account is quick and easy, and only takes 5-10 minutes. All requests to join are reviewed within 1-2 business days. The Projects feature is embedded within the Maroon and Gold Network, adding to the many ways this platform can help students and alumni get ahead in their career!

GO TO THE MAROON AND GOLD NETWORK

Projects are short-term, professional experiences, like a micro-internship. They can take place at any time, anywhere and typically last between 5-40 hours and are completed within one week to one month. The specific schedule will be determined between the Project poster and the Project recipient. Students seeking a Project can explore different industries, gain new skills, and make important career connections. Alumni posting Projects can give back to someone just starting down their career path while also gaining timely support of their company/organization. Projects can be used by any type of company from Fortune 500s to small businesses to an entrepreneur. The kind of work can range from design, research, sales, marketing, training and development, writing, IT, finance, and more. 

A good Project should be work that complements responsibilities typically completed by employees and provides educational benefits to the Project Recipient. Educational benefits might include building or refining skills, learning about a new industry, and practicing professional competencies like teamwork and communication.

Projects should have a concrete goal that can be completed in a set timeframe.

Some examples include:

• Conducting market research
• Writing content for a website, article, blog or social media
• Updating a website
• Refreshing a presentation
• Testing software
• Creating a social media content calendar
• Cleaning up data and reports
• Analyzing data and extracting insights
• Designing a logo
• Updating a user manual
• Reconciling financial reports
• Reviewing contracts
• Summarizing competition for a product or service
• Generating new leads for sales or fundraising efforts
• Sourcing candidates on LinkedIn

The options are endless! 

The video tutorial below or this written guide will guide you through how to post a project on the Maroon and Gold Network.

 

 

No, Projects do not replace traditional internship programs. Internships are a valuable way for students to prepare for their career. Projects complement internship opportunities since they help students pursue a variety of experiences in a more condensed timeframe.

If you are interested in hiring a UMN student for an internship or job, visit Handshake, the U of M's online job and internship database. 

Projects can be either in-person or remote. Remote opportunities will likely attract more interest from students due to the added flexibility. 

Projects can be either paid or unpaid. The Project Poster will determine the compensation and share that information via the Project posting on the Maroon and Gold Network.

We encourage paid Projects, if possible. The recommended rate is $15/hour or $600 total for a 40-hour Project. All compensation will be handled between the Project Poster and Recipient directly. The Maroon and Gold Network and the Alumni Association do not facilitate this. 

If offering a paid Project is a barrier to hosting an experience, please proceed with posting an unpaid Project as our central goal is to create opportunities for students to gain new skills, explore different industries, and make career connections. The condensed timeframe and added flexibility of a Project may limit some of the financial barriers that would otherwise get in the way of students pursuing a more traditional unpaid internship.

 Additionally, the Mooty Internship Scholarship is available to students to accept an unpaid micro-internship. 

Yes, Project Posters can hire more than one student for the same Project. 

International students are strongly encouraged to consult an International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) advisor before applying for Projects to ensure they can receive authorization for the type of work they are seeking.

For unpaid projects, international students do not need work authorization.However, when international students are engaging in completely unpaid/volunteer work, they should be careful not to receive any form of rewards. ISSS recommends students to apply for Curricular Practical Training (CPT) if participating in an unpaid or volunteer opportunity are related to their major so that they have the safety guard. But they are not required to have a CPT. 

For paid projects, international students must have work authorization, and the project must be related to their major.

• If they are current students, they need CPT. There are challenges with CPT: It is tied to a specific job and an offer is required before the student can apply for CPT.
• If they've graduated, they need Optional Practical Training (OPT). Many already have this authorization, and it is not tied to a specific job. F-1 students who already have OPT authorization can apply for work opportunities with Projects that are related to their major. F-1 students who don't have OPT and J-1 students who need Academic Training authorization need to discuss their options with an ISSS adviser before applying to any Projects. Contact an ISSS adviser.
  

No matter where you live, or what stage of your career you are in, the Alumni Association has resources to help you grow in your chosen field.

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