Start with the October 1 deadline and eligibility rules
Applications for the 2027 AAPD Summer Internship Program are open and close Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Applicants self-identify as disabled; AAPD does not require a specific diagnosis or disability documentation.
| Item | Current published information |
|---|---|
| Application deadline | October 1, 2026 at 5 p.m. Eastern Time |
| Program type | Paid internship-placement program |
| Academic status | Current student or recent graduate of a U.S.-based school or qualifying program |
| Recent-graduate window | May 2022 or later for the 2027 cycle |
| Disability documentation | No diagnosis or documentation required for the application; applicant self-identifies as disabled |
| Work authorization | International students may apply with required authorization; individual hosts can add citizenship rules |
| Work schedule | 32 internship hours Monday–Thursday plus separate Friday programming |
| Pay | At least $20 per hour for 2027 |
| In-person housing | Accessible housing provided |
| Remote housing support | Up to $2,000 per month based on reviewed rent and utility bills |
Applicants must be current students or recent graduates of a U.S.-based school or program, have a high-school diploma or equivalent by May 2027, and remain based in the United States or a U.S. territory during the program. For Summer 2027, recent graduates include people who graduated in May 2022 or later. Nontraditional routes can qualify, including community or technical college, skills-based programs, apprenticeships and trade school.
International students can apply with the required U.S. work authorization. A specific host, especially a federal agency or Congressional office, may impose a citizenship requirement. Keep that host-level restriction separate from AAPD’s program-level eligibility.
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Choose a workable format without treating a preference as a placement
AAPD can place interns with Congressional offices, federal agencies, nonprofits and for-profit organizations. AAPD makes the final placement. Naming a preferred organization or field helps the matching process; it does not reserve that employer.
In-person interns live in AAPD-provided accessible housing in Washington, D.C. Remote interns can receive technology, internet and qualifying housing support. Decide whether relocation or remote work is actually workable before ranking preferences, then state any nonnegotiable access or location constraint directly.
Keep support categories separate when comparing the program with another offer. Hourly pay, provided housing, transportation and a conditional remote housing stipend are different economic items.
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Prepare evidence for the work you want to try
AAPD’s application includes applicant information, internship placement preferences, essays and a resume. Use the online portal linked from the current program page rather than an old application copy.
Choose a work direction specific enough to help a coordinator understand your fit: research support, communications, data organization, policy work or another genuine interest. Pair the preference with one piece of evidence from school, work, service, a project or another responsibility.
Do not inflate a small example. Maintaining an event-registration list, correcting duplicate records and producing an attendance summary is concrete evidence of organization and data handling; it is not a national operations strategy.
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Submit early enough to fix a file or time-zone mistake
Before submitting, reopen every uploaded file and confirm that the final version reflects your real availability. Convert the 5 p.m. Eastern cutoff to your own time zone and set an earlier personal target. Save the confirmation privately.
Keep other applications moving while AAPD reviews the cohort. Selection into AAPD is not a promise of a particular placement, and an unanswered application is not an offer.