The annual Internship Fund Auction at the Yale School of Management (SOM) this month raised $44,000, auctioning off high-ticket items ranging from a summer apartment rental in New York City to margaritas with Dean Sharon Oster.
The auction, which has been going strong for three decades, is one of SOM’s signature events. The total funds raised this year outpaced each of the previous seven years, coming in second only to the $46,000 collected in 2002.
Event organizers select a theme each year and students dress up accordingly. This year’s theme was SOMonopoly, a play on the Monopoly board game. Students came decked out in tuxedos with top hats and monocles, and Oster served as the master of ceremonies.
The Internship Fund is part of Yale SOM’s continuing commitment to helping interested students explore careers in the nonprofit sector. (Yale SOM was recently ranked first by U.S. News & World Report in its nonprofit specialty ranking.) The monies raised will help subsidize students who take nonprofit summer internships, which often pay little to no salary.
The first of its kind among business schools in the nation, the fund has been emulated at many other schools. This year, applications for funding have nearly tripled, according to Internship Fund Co-Chair Carolyn McLean ’09. Thanks to the fundraising success of the auction and other events throughout the year, McLean says the organization expects to help up to 50 students with summer internships this year, about double last year’s number.
“People know we’re in great need of support and they stepped up,” McLean said, noting that fundraising has been strong all year long. “We’re absolutely thrilled with how generous everyone has been,” she continued.
To learn more about the Internship Fund at Yale SOM, click here.
