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Become a Breakthrough Internship Network Host Company

The Breakthrough Internship Network (BIN) is a comprehensive internship placement and professional development program based in Austin, Texas, designed to connect a diverse and highly motivated group of college students to meaningful internship opportunities. More than just a placement service, BIN focuses on preparing students for success in their internships and beyond by offering targeted training, coaching, and continuous support throughout their internship experience.

BIN is a program of Breakthrough Central Texas, the leading college access and success nonprofit in Central Texas. As Austin’s premier internship placement program for first-generation college students, BIN has placed over 800 interns at more than 100 leading organizations in the region, including Accenture, AMD, Horizon Bank, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, and Tesla.

THE WHY

An internship is an invaluable experience for any college student – an opportunity to gain professional experience, explore potential careers, and build a professional network. However, many internships are out of reach for students from under-resourced communities, who may not have the necessary networks or financial resources to accept unpaid positions.

BIN serves as a vital bridge connecting Breakthrough college students with meaningful, paid internships, broadening our students’ horizons while simultaneously providing host companies with dedicated, high-performing interns from diverse backgrounds. By offering paid summer internships, the program not only helps students finance their education but also lays a strong foundation for their future careers.

Host Company Responsibilities

Host companies interview the student(s) who are best fit for the internship role at their company. In order to create the most beneficial internship experience for both host companies and interns, we ask host companies to:Provide a full-time internship, 29-40 hours per week, 8-12 weeks over the summer

  • Pay each intern $15-$25 an hour
  • Provide meaningful work and regular feedback to intern
  • Assign a manager to supervise and mentor intern
  • Communicate regularly with the Program Manager
  • Allow intern to attend training workshops during the summer
  • Attend and participate in the Presentations of Learning – End of Summer event
  • Complete the end of summer host company survey

Support from the Breakthrough team

Host companies play a pivotal role, benefiting from the comprehensive support provided by Breakthrough staff. Our devoted team meticulously screens all internship applicants, ensuring a seamless match between a host company’s specific needs and a student’s academic focus and career aspirations. The Breakthrough Internship Network will:

  • Recommend the best candidate to host company for each internship opportunity
  • Introduce candidates and host companies via email and facilitate communication throughout interview process
  • Regularly check in with intern and host company throughout the internship
  • Gather feedback from intern and host company via end-of-summer survey to gather feedback on our internship program
  • Offer more than 15 professional development opportunities from resume review and interview prep, to speed networking, professional communication, building your brand, and more.

For more information on the Breakthrough Internship Network, contact Kate Garrett at kate@breakthroughctx.org.

Host Companies

Academic Programs International (API)

ABC Home & Commercial Services

Accenture

Aceable

Alchemy Software Development

AllClear ID

American Bank of Commerce

American Constructors

Andrew Harper

AT&T

Austin FC

Baker Botts LLP

Balcones Resources

Bazaarvoice

Ben Barnes Group

Birds Barbershop

Blackbaud

Bluepoint Games

Bracewell & Giuliani LLP

Breakthrough Central Texas

Bridgepoint Consulting

Brigham Resources

Building Team Solutions

Castle Hill Partners

Center for Generational Kinetics

CG&S

Circuit of the Americas

CML Exploration

Comerica

Compass Learning

CSID

Deep Eddy Vodka

Dell Technologies

DLA Piper LLP

DropOff

Durbin Bennett l Private Wealth Management

Enoch Kever PLLC

Farmers Insurance

Fish & Richardson

Fleming & Conway Allstate Agency

FloSports

Forestar Group

George Brothers Kincaid & Horton LLP

Grande Communications

Graves Dougherty Hearon & Moody

Green Mountain Energy Company

GSD&M

Headspring

Hellfire Games

Hill+Knowlton Strategies

HomeAway

Holtzman

Holt Engineering

Horizon Bank

HPI Real Estate & Investments

IBM

Indeed

Independent Financial

Jones Energy

Kasasa

Kendra Scott

KIPP Austin Public Schools

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Lifesize

Live Oak-Gottesman

Luminex Corporation

Mattersight

MI7

Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

Nanohmics

NI

Nolan Ryan Foundation

Noonday Collection

NXP Semiconductors

Onit

Onramp

Packet Design

Parker Phoenix PR

PDS Energy

Pease Park Conservancy

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

Pipeline Success

Pivot3

Plains Capital Bank

Powell Ebert & Smolik PC

PPD

Reed & Scardino LLP

RetailMeNot

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Romman

SailPoint

Samsung Austin Semiconductor

Saturn Aviation

Seton Medical Center Austin

Sherry Matthews Advocacy Marketing

Silicon Labs

SocialMedia.org

Solarwinds

St. David’s Institute for Learning

Stantec

Statoil

STG Design

Stratus Properties

Tesla

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Texas Department of Transportation

Texas Forensic Science Commission

Texas Health Institute

Texas Medicaid and Healthcare Partnership

Texas Office of Attorney General

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

The Butler Brothers

The Chism Company

Tokyo Electron America

Trigger Point

UFCU

Upland Software

uShip

uStudio

Victoria Emergency Associates

W2O Group

Waterloo Associates

Westwood Country Club

Whole Foods Market

Winstead PC

Wortham Insurance

*Host companies, 2011-2022

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Julie Fisher, Chair
NI

Clint Martin
University of Texas Athletics

Danny McKinley
SpaceSquared

Jennifer Newbill
Dell Technologies

Dr. Jim Brand
Victoria Emergency Associates

Kelli Raymond
Horizon Bank

Matt Glazer
Blue Sky Partners

Michael Ramirez
VeraBank

Monet Sangermano
AMD

Munira Fareed
Breakthrough Board Trustee