Frequently Asked Questions Corporate WIHP™ Award Sponsorship WIHP™ Internship Awards Institutional Selection Process General Inquiries

WIHP™ Internship Awards Institutional Selection Process

Women in High Places, or "WIHP", is an informal network of the 200 or so highest ranking women in the health care industry and in medical research and academia.   Its goal is simple: help women at the highest levels of their companies or institutions connect with their peers to share, learn from and support each other and build productive networks.  

We also recognize that "leaders create leaders." Through WIHP Internship Awards, WIHP also aims to create mentoring opportunities for academically qualified young women with leadership potential who are interested in pursuing careers in health care or advanced studies in medicine and research, by matching them to scientific and medical thought leaders and institutions in their fields of interest. Innovara is opening the opportunity to all individuals and/or companies to provide financial support of summer or other short term internships of undergraduate women at recognized undergraduate and/or graduate academic and medical institutional leaders in various areas of medical, scientific, biomedical and biomedical engineering research.

Each WIHP™ Award offers a chance for an academically outstanding female student who also shows strong personal leadership traits, to be accorded a semester or summer internship in one of these leading schools or institutions.  Innovara encourages the institution to regard these awards as an avenue to help women in all fields attain some support and insight into the world of science, engineering, mathematics and medical research.

The WIHP™ Award minimum donation amount to Innovara is $2000 per intern. This donation will go directly to the institution; the balance is used to defray direct expenses associated with selecting and guiding the mentees from the institution and managing these awards.

The institution receiving the award shall designate an area and faculty member responsible for the selection and management of the intern by at least three months prior to the start of the internship.

The identification of the candidate to receive the award shall be at the discretion of the institution and its faculty, according to the following criteria:

1. The intern must be female, at least 18 years of age by the time of commencement of the internship and enrolled in an accredited undergraduate institution or about to begin a Masters or PhD or MD degree program at an accredited post-graduate institution.
2. The intern must have at least a 3.5 grade point average or other evidence of academic excellence, with a concentration or major interest in science, mathematics or engineering.
3. The intern should have demonstrated other (academic and/or non-academic) leadership qualities. These qualities must be articulated in a letter of recommendation by a faculty member or other “recommender” to the institution (with a copy to Innovara).

WIHP awards are designated to institutions and fields that demonstrate one or more of the following:

1. The field is underrepresented by women in leadership positions
2. The institution is recognized as a leader in the field of the internship’s assignment
3. The faculty member responsible for the intern has a personal and professional commitment to mentoring young talent in his/her field of research specialty

It is not the intention of Innovara to “over control” WIHP awards. However, the institution and faculty receiving the award for an intern must agree that it will share its rationale for selection of the intern with Innovara based upon a discussion, interview or other communication with Innovara. 

In addition, upon completion of the internship period, Innovara may require the intern to complete a written evaluation of her experience as an intern and the faculty member responsible for the intern shall also complete a formal evaluation.  These evaluation forms will be provided to faculty in charge of the intern and upon completion of the internship, will be provided to Innovara by same.  Failure to comply may result in the institution losing access to further WIHP awards.

Within the institution, the faculty member in charge of the intern must be prepared to actively mentor, teach, guide and monitor the intern.  The faculty member shall identify clear objectives and responsibilities for the intern that may be reasonably performed and completed during the term of the internship.

Financial awards are given to the institution upon confirmation of the individual to be the intern. At that time, a letter from Innovara to the intern will confirm her selection as an intern by this institution and the amount and purpose of the internship award.  In any given year, the intern may not receive more than one WIHP internship award, but may receive additional support through matching or other awards, grants or other financial vehicles.

If a specific company or individual is the grant funder, the institution, faculty and intern must permit themselves to be contacted by the company or individual for verification of the above information.  Innovara or other grant funders reserve the right to promote their support of WIHP awards, however, any publicity of WIHP awards given specifically to an institution or individual faculty or intern recipient shall be with the institution, faculty and intern’s knowledge and permission in advance of such publicity, wherever possible.  The institution shall have unrestricted permission of Innovara and any other company or individual grant funders to promote its being designated as a recipient of WIHP awards.

Institutions previously nominated for and/or accepting WIHP awards (and fields) include:

• Amherst College
• Brigham & Women's Hospital
• Cleveland Clinic
• Dana Farber Cancer Center
• Hampshire College
• Harvard University
• Johns Hopkins Medical Institutes
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Massachusetts General Hospital
• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
• Smith College
• University of Michigan
• University of Minnesota Diabetes Institute
• University of Pittsburgh
• Washington University
• Yale University School of Medicine

Institutions accepting WIHP awards may use their funds to support summer interns from within their own institutions or from each other.  In the event that the WIHP-award recipient institution chooses to send their intern to another WIHP institution, it is with the understanding that the sending institution and/or intern shall be responsible for all expenses or costs beyond the amount awarded by WIHP.

To request consideration as a recipient of a WIHP internship award or for further information, faculty and/or the institution should email Innovara directly (innovara@innovara.com).

WIHP™ and Women in High Places™ are trademarks and intellectual property of Innovara, Inc. All rights reserved, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007.