Over 1,000 Women Have Completed Girls Who Invest Programs—How to Apply

The non-profit Girls Who Invest (GWI) is seeking to transform the investment management industry by adding women to the field, and it seems to be making big strides. An October 2021 press release revealed that 75 percent of the SIP (Summer Intensive Program) scholars had gotten jobs in the industry.

So, how competitive is the program? There isn't any word on the Girls Who Invest acceptance rate, but one person reported hearing that the SIP accepted 150–200 students in 2020, out of more than 10,000 applicants.

In a statement, founder Seema R. Hingorani said that she was “incredibly excited” about preparing young women to become leading investors. She noted that more than 1,000 college women had completed the programs successfully since the non-profit started in 2015. “Since launching Girls Who Invest six years ago, I have been overwhelmed with how much we have positively impacted the investment management industry and the lives of so many young women in such a short period of time,” she added.

Girls Who Invest’s SIP offers the opportunity “to explore a career in finance and investment as part of a supportive community of peers, lecturers, industry experts, alumni and GWI staff,” the website explains. The 10-week program, usually offered between late May and August, is open to sophomores currently enrolled or transferring to a four-year U.S. university, GWI adds.

The non-profit’s OIP (Online Intensive Program) “is a tuition-free, self-guided learning experience that gives students a solid foundation in core finance and investment concepts at their own pace.” The program involves three online modules to be completed between February and August, and it’s open to freshmen and sophomores at four-year U.S. universities or students at two-year U.S. colleges with confirmed or conditional admission to a four-year university, says GWI.

Girls Who Invest says that its application period has ended for its Summer 2022, but prospective scholars can sign up for the GWI mailing list to be alerted when the 2023 application period begins.

To give you a sense of the application timeline, the SIP started fielding applications for its 2022 program in May 2021, with early action decisions coming in mid-September and early November and regular application decisions following in December. GWI will assign 2022 SIP scholars pre-work in February, internship placements will be announced in March, the educational portion of the SIP will run from May to July, and the internship portion will follow in July and August.

To apply to the SIP, you will need to provide two recommendations letters—one personal, one academic—your most recent college transcript, your high school transcript, your resume, a video statement, and two written essays.

The OIP application period for 2022 also started last May, with early action decisions coming in early September and late October and regular admissions decisions coming in December. During the program year, OIP students complete the first module from February to May, the second from July to July, and the third in August.

Unlike the SIP, the Online Intensive Program doesn't require admissions letters.

Good luck, applicants!