Applications
The 2025-26 Student Applications will reopen in August 2025 (see above).
The program is open to U-M graduate students of any discipline or degree program. You must apply to participate in this competitive program, and you are matched to organizations based on your experience and interest. In order to participate, you must have:
- A record of academic and professional excellence
- Knowledge, skills, or lived experience relevant to the particular nonprofit mission and/or project area
- Sensitivity and commitment to issues of community needs, financial concerns, and confidentiality
- A commitment to serving the nonprofit sector, whether in a professional or personal capacity
The Board Fellowship Experience
If you are selected as a Board Fellow, you will serve as a non-voting board member for one academic year, from October through April.
In addition, you will:
- Attend all board meetings and serve on a board committee
- Complete a board-level project which tackles complex organizational challenges
- Build relationships with your peer Board Fellows through cohort social events
- Commit approximately the same amount of time to the board as a full board member (6-10 hours a month)
- Attend trainings and workshops hosted by B+I to earn your endorsement
Audrey Fok (MBA '25)
“Before the Nonprofit Board Fellowship program, I had always dreamed of serving on a non-profit board but had so many concerns. I had no idea what it meant, what it takes to run a successful non-profit, let alone how to join one. For the longest time, I assumed I would not have that chance until decades into my career. And that’s what makes the Board Fellow experience incredibly valuable. It gave me the opportunity to not only gain early exposure and hands-on training through impactful projects, but with the one-on-one support of phenomenal board mentors who walked me through the process. It let me experience what may have only been a door opened to me decades later and gave me a chance to start thinking about perspectives of an executive team and interact with so many people outside of my current professional network. It reinforced my desire to serve in the future and gave me the confidence to seek those opportunities.”
Shira Hammerslough (MSW '24)
“This program was an invaluable opportunity to apply what I had learned in my classes to a real-world organization. I gained valuable experience that I will take forward into my future career.”
Zach Nerod (MBA '24)
“Being a Board Fellow was by far and away the most rewarding decision I have made in graduate school!”