Ignite William and Mary is a year-round program for William and Mary students that pairs them to
startups based on their interests; provides them with access to an entrepreneurial community off
campus; offers internship with Ignition to learn about aspects of starting and evaluating
businesses; and culminates in a joint venture with students to create a business that will provide
those involved with the best job of all upon graduation- their own business! The intern program is a
great way for students to get real world business experience, exposure to the rigors of starting a
business, and to start a business with an active network of support and funding.
Students already working on building a business can also receive support Ignition through the
application process. Ignition Center is within walking distance to the William and Mary campus.
Students interested in participating in the internship program should contact Ignition.
Welcome William and Mary students! We are excited to announce that Ignition is offering exciting
internship opportunities available for the summer, fall, and spring semesters!
We are flexible and will match you with the experience that best fits your availability, your current
stage of development, and your short and long-term goals.
Our internship program will offer three potential paths for our accepted applicants.
Most interns start here, working directly with Ignition’s internal operations. Interns
will be involved in evaluating applications from founders to measure the health of a
startup or concept based on a wide range of criteria; attend meetings with applicants to
learn and evaluate their products or ideas; gain exposure to internal decisions and
meetings; assist with relationship and community building; and participate in Ignition
programs and events. In this track, interns will gain exposure to a wide range of
industries, people, and business challenges; as well as learn to evaluate and challenge
different business concepts.
This track is great for those who want to ease into the startup world and gain exposure
to people and startups from a variety of industries. Starting here is the perfect way to
prepare to enter our other student tracks.
A commitment of 8 hours per week or more is expected.
Interns will be paired with a startup company to learn the
ins-and-outs of starting a business, and become closely familiar with the associated
challenges and risks. This track gives interns a close-up view of creating a business
while working directly with the company’s founders as they face an array of business
obstacles and problems, and learn how to overcome them. This track is ideal for those
who want to start with a taste or introduction to creating a business. You cannot
recreate this experience in a classroom.
This is a great track for those who aren’t ready to jump into starting their own
company, but want real world experience working closely with a startup.
A commitment of 8 hours per week or more is expected.
Join a team starting a business from day one. This will be an
intensive
program, usually only offered during the summer, where interns, Ignition, and our
network of advisors work together to create a new business. You'll be involved in the
stages of creating a business including contract formation, business model development,
branding, design, identification of key resources and relationships, testing marketing
strategies, revealing cost and revenue structures, validating profitability and
scalability, and developing customer channels. The goal is to create a lasting and
profitable business, or quickly fail so we learn and try again.
In the founder track, interns will receive ownership in the company, as long as they do
not abandon it. The ideal objective is for interns to create a business that will allow
them to become self-employed or have a clear path towards sustainability through their
startup upon graduation.
A commitment of at least 24 hours per week is expected.
Your overall summer experience with Ignition can lead to much more. We are confident that students who
work with Ignition during the summer will develop a fire for entrepreneurship. We'll have many ways for
you to stay involved with Ignition for the rest of your time at William & Mary and beyond.
Regardless of a student's track, we expect a lot from our interns, who will leave our program learning
how to think about the world differently. Interns will learn a great deal through our program that can
supplement their studies, allowing for experiences that they will never learn in a classroom. They will
walk away from our program with experiences, knowledge, and connections that will serve them the rest of
their life.
Apply now! We are excited to meet you!