Career Program Overview
Opening Doors to Success
Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) is the nation’s premiere summer internship program for talented college students of color that can lead to full-time job offers. Since its inception, SEO’s Career Program has placed over 5,000 Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian and Native American students in internships that lead to opportunities in exciting and rewarding careers in the most competitive industries worldwide. Our program is featured in Princeton Review’s 109 Best Internships in America, and is a gateway to the most coveted and highest paying careers. More than 75% of SEO interns receive job offers from SEO partners after their internships. SEO grooms its interns to excel in the workplace and become leaders in their communities who will give back and forge a path to success for the next generation. As a direct result of the Career Program and the high performance of its interns, SEO has significantly increased the number of people of color employed on Wall Street and by major corporations nationwide.
Please click here to view the SEO Career Program video.
What SEO Interns Receive
SEO interns receive a comprehensive internship experience that goes far beyond simply placing students at companies for the summer. Interns gain exposure to CEOs and top executives of SEO partners through the SEO Summer Seminar Series. We offer intensive training before and during the internship. Each intern is supported by an extensive mentoring program, and is welcomed into a powerful alumni network comprised of over 6,000 alumni representing 46 states and 47 countries. Combined, these resources put our interns on the fast track to some of the most financially rewarding career opportunities in the world. SEO Career Program interns have been turning their summer experiences into successful careers for the last three decades.
How We Started
SEO was founded in 1963 during the height of the modern Civil Rights Movement as a mentoring and college prep program for underprivileged high school students in New York City. The organization mission was based upon the conviction that all students can succeed when given access to opportunities. As more and more of SEO’s students went on to college, SEO recognized that there was a need to advocate for increased opportunities for minorities in the corporate workforce. In 1980, the SEO Career Program was established to help high achieving students of color (Black, Asian, Hispanic/Latino and Native American) reach their career goals by providing internships in some of our nation’s most challenging fields. Starting with Wall Street, the SEO Career Program began with 11 students placed at five investment banking firms. The Career Program has more than 40 partners, offering hundreds of career-blazing summer internships in seven areas.
Program Areas
SEO offers internship opportunities in the following areas:
Global Corporate Leadership
Banking/Asset Management
Investment Banking
Sales & Trading
Investment Research
Transaction Services
Asset Management
Accounting/Finance
Information Technology
Corporate Law
Philanthropy/TFA
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