Frequently Asked Questions

We invite you to visit our Resources for Undocumented Immigrant Students (CLICK HERE) to learn more about college funding sources, immigration legal resources, and best practices for identifying or building a supportive community at your campus.

Yes, we welcome all college/university students to create an online scholarship application profile. While some scholarships may have specific citizenship requirements, our application system will match you with scholarships you are eligible for based on your profile.

Please visit our Other Scholarship Resources where you’ll find external scholarships, internships, fellowships and other student programs tailored to your interests. 

Visit the 2024-25 Better FAFSA Information webpage for information and resources.

We welcome you to visit our “Financial Aid Tips for College Students – Find the Resources You Need at Your College Campus.”

We understand your need for financial support. While we currently don’t offer emergency funding, we recommend contacting your financial aid office to explore available scholarships, grants, and emergency assistance programs at your college/university. They can guide you through the specific options and assist you in finding the best solution for your situation.

Navigate to: https://hacu.awardspring.com/

Download the Scholarship Application Guide: (Download Here). 

This guide walks you through applying for Palo Alto Networks Cyber Scholars Program on AwardSpring. 

Yes, absolutely! The positions we have change each session. We highly encourage students to apply routinely throughout their studies.

Please make sure to update your application each session to include new accomplishments and activities, including updated transcripts. 

Once your application status is switched to eligible, your application is considered for all available positions. When HNIP receives internship openings, staff reviews the eligible applicant pool and submits applications for consideration by the agency.

HNIP continually receives position requests from agencies. Some submit requests months in advance, whereas others submit their requests a few weeks before a session starts. After filling the last position for a session, likely a few weeks into the session, we will notify all applicants not selected via email. If you are not selected, we highly encourage you to apply again as opportunities are different session to session!  

We are sorry to hear that you are a having a technology difficulty. Please submit a ticket here and we will follow up with you as soon as possible.

After submitting your application, you are only able to edit your general contact information. If you would like to upload different documents, please email the PDF(s) to [email protected], making sure to include your full name, application session, and document type(s). If you would like to edit the resume section, work history, and/or education portion(s) of your application, please email [email protected] with the details, and we will either complete the edits (if simple and quick) or change your application back to in progress for you to edit and resubmit. 

Prior to being selected, the three statuses as an applicant you need to be aware of are as follows:

• In Progress – exactly as it sounds; you have not yet submitted your application 
• Submitted – you have submitted your application and either a) HNIP Staff needs to review it for completeness or b) it is incomplete, most likely missing the appropriate documents
• Eligible – HNIP Staff have reviewed your application and it is complete; your application is eligible for consideration

Internships are 40-hours per week. However, some agencies are able to accommodate part-time interns, with a minimum of 20-hours per week. 

The only place in your application that we would suggest specifying positions or agencies is as a separate sentence before starting your actual essay. Otherwise, we highly encourage keeping your application generic since HACU can submit your application to multiple agencies. You don’t want to limit your options and miss out on the perfect opportunity. 

In general, we suggest that you complete your application in a way that demonstrates your skills and goals. In doing so, you keep your options open and will not miss out on a perfect match between your own goals and those of varying agencies. Please recognize that a generic application does NOT mean lacking details. Load your application with details as they are what truly paints a picture of you and your skills and goals. 

No. Your pay rate is determined by your degree level at the time of the internship. Please see the pay rates information above. 

Most of the internship positions require interns to be currently enrolled in a degree-seeking program during the time of the internship. There are a limited number of positions available to recent graduates. One position that is available is HNIP’s Conduit Program with the Library of Congress.

As a way to support interns if selected for a hybrid or in-person internship and relocating. Transportation to your housing for the first time will also be arranged and covered.

If you are selected for a hybrid or in-person internship position and are required to relocate to Washington, D.C., HACU will arrange housing for you.

When applicable, HACU does not pay for housing, but rather fully arranges it and supports interns so there is no upfront cost or burden.

HACU will arrange for you to live with other interns, choose an appropriate apartment and location close to work and necessities, and provide furnishings so you just need to bring your suitcase. HACU ensures that there is no credit check, no security deposit, and no upfront costs (e.g. administrative fees, move-in fees, or first month’s rent). Interns will have their total rent for the entire session equally divided and deducted from their bi-weekly paychecks.

All HACU interns can choose to instead arrange their own housing and manage payments on their own if they would like.

HACU serves as your employer on record. HACU is a contractor of the federal government, making interns sub-contractors of the federal government. As your official employer, HACU pays interns. 

Yes! In accordance with state and federal law, HACU will not discriminate against employees or applicants for employment because of race, disability, color, creed, religion, sex, gender, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, veteran status, or non-job related factors. Please see the eligibility section above for more information. 

Yes! HNIP (with federal agencies) is open to all students, whether your institution is a Hispanic-Serving Institution, HACU member, or not. Please see the eligibility section above for more information.

If you have questions or would like information on our Hispanic-Serving School Districts (HSSD) affiliation, please contact Jarvis Clark, Director of Student Services and PK-12 Initiatives, at (210) 576-3215 or [email protected].

Yes, the Member List Order Form is available on HACU’s website under HACU Members/Member Addresses. You may submit the completed form to HACU with payment to receive a list of our members. Payment is required in full before the order is processed. Purchased lists include the following contact information: contact name, contact title and institutional mailing address. An additional discount is available for addresses purchased by HACU members.

All Faculty and Staff Affiliates receive an additional discount on the already reduced member rate to attend HACU conferences and events. They also receive a subscription to The Voice and e-mail updates regarding advocacy, grants and contracts, student programs, internships, and scholarships.

A fixed number of contacts is maintained per member institution and only the President, HACU Contact or Administrative Assistant can add or remove these.  You will need to contact your President, HACU Contact or Administrative Assistant and request that you replace one of the contacts that HACU currently maintains with your institution.  You can also consider joining as HACU a Faculty and Staff Affiliate, available to individuals at HACU-member and non-member institutions.

Only the President, HACU Contact, Administrative Assistant, and Accounting/Billing Contact usernames and passwords can modify the member institution’s profile by visiting Update Your Institutional Profile on our website. Institutions can add or remove contacts at the member institution or edit general institutional information. However, required contacts (Presidents, HACU Contacts, Administrative Assistants and Accounting/Billing Contacts) cannot remove themselves as contacts. For instance, if there is a new President, the current President cannot login with his/her username and replace him/herself with a new President. In this instance, the Administrative Assistant, HACU Contact or Accounting/Billing Contact could make this change or the President’s staff person could contact the Membership Department to make the change. The same applies to HACU Contacts, Administrative Assistants and Accounting/Billing Contacts. You are not allowed to change your name, the name of your institution, or enrollment statistics during updates. If these have changed, please contact the Membership Department at [email protected].

Yes. You can visit HACU’s website at Update Your Individual Profile. You will need your user name and password to login, so please have these available. You will not be allowed to change your name or the name of your institution during the update. If these have changed, please contact our Membership Department at [email protected].

Usernames and passwords are sent via e-mail to all institutional contacts and Faculty and Staff Affiliates upon approval of their membership. If you can not locate your username, please contact our Membership Department at [email protected].

You can request a Password Reminder from HACU’s website under Members/Member Login Info.  Enter your user name, leave the password field blank and click on the “Login” button.  A red message will appear saying your password is being emailed to you. If you do not receive your password, please contact the Membership Department to double check your e-mail address on file to make sure what we have is correct.

Renewal notifications are sent via e-mail approximately two months prior to the start of the new membership year (January 1).

For institutional renewals, the President, HACU Contact, Administrative Assistant, and Accounting/Billing Contact receive this notification. Institutions can renew their membership here. Only the President’s, HACU Contact’s, Administrative Assistant’s, and Accounting/Billing Contact’s usernames and passwords are authorized to renew their institution’s membership. Existing member contacts data will populate the institutional renewal application and can be updated as necessary. However, enrollment statistics will be blank and must be updated for the renewal to be processed.

Faculty and Staff Affiliates can renew their membership using the Faculty and Staff Affiliate Renewal Application. Affiliates’ usernames and passwords authorize them to renew their membership. Existing member contact data will populate their renewal application and can be updated as necessary.