Accessible Community provides internships crafted to help the community and meet learning goals.
- Would you like to learn about accessibility or build your expertise?
- Are you looking for an internship opportunity that serves your community with flexible hours and location?
- Would you like contribute to an effort that will improve the lives of millions of Americans?
Overview
Accessible Community helps students and professionals looking for a career change gain experience in accessibility testing and remediation for facilities and technology. We also teach accessible software development techniques. We customize each internship to meet your learning goals and contribute to the disability community. Internships typically include at least 200 hours of work, but the amount and schedule can vary. Each intern creates a capstone project based on their skills and interests. This project either contributes to the body of knowledge in accessibility or advances Accessible Community’s mission in the community.
The goals for the internship program include:
- Supplementing limited educational opportunities in accessibility by providing hands on experience
- Helping small businesses and community organizations become more inclusive of people with diverse abilities
- Building a workforce of educated professionals by engaging and inspiring them about creating a more inclusive world
Internships are currently unpaid.
Accessibility Interns
During this internship, you will have an opportunity to learn and expand on your accessibiilty and universal design skills in both physical and virtual environments.
Each internship will be customized based on the intern’s skills and desired learning goals, with opportunities to:
- Evaluate websites using Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 AA and facilities using ADA and universal design standards.
- Help small businesses and community organizations who have requested assistance.
- Test and improve content and tools that support organizations in becoming accessible
- Produce blog posts, resource guides or other materials
Intern Responsibilities
- Participate in weekly planning meetings
- Clearly communicate your existing skills, when you are having difficulty, and your desired areas of growth
- Meet deadlines that are jointly agreed upon by the intern and staff member
Position Qualities and Requirements
The successful intern will:
- Be motivated to succeed, research unfamiliar technologies, ask for help when needed, and see work through to completion
- Have a passion for serving the community with a preference for interest in assisting the disability community or others in need
Who Can Participate?
If you are a high school student in Loudoun county, a college or post graduate student, or a professional exploring a career change, you can apply to participate. Experience in web development or design, architecture, occupational therapy, or human computer interaction is helpful but not required.
Accessible Community is approved for internships with the following schools. If you do not see your school on the list, let us know and we will contact them.
- Frederick Community College
- George Mason University
- George Washington
- Georgetown University
- Hood College
- James Madison University
- Johns Hopkins University
- McDaniel College
- Northern Virginia Community College
- Towson University
- Virginia Tech
Sound Interesting?
Contact intern@accessiblecommunity.org to apply.
Accessible Community is an equal opportunity organization. All applicants will be considered without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.