Social Impact Practicums (SIPs)

What is a Social Impact Practicum (SIP)?

A Social Impact Practicum is a project-based experiential learning opportunity connecting undergraduate courses at Dartmouth with community needs identified by nonprofit organizations throughout the Upper Valley. Dartmouth students take the skills and content that they are learning in your courses and apply them to relevant projects for, and with, local community partners.

In other words, an SIP is a real-world project with real-world impact.

Current Social Impact Practicum courses, projects, and partners are listed at the link below:

Social Impact Practicum (SIP) Course Search

Current Courses with a SIP Component

For more information or to suggest a course that you think could benefit from a Social Impact Practicum, please contact Ashley Doolittle.

DCSI also collaborates with Thayer's Senior Design Challenge to match human-centered design projects proposed by Upper Valley nonprofits with this two-term  senior-level engineering course.

Integrating A SIP into Your Course

Faculty who integrate a Social Impact Practicum into their course receive several layers of targeted support, including:

  • Faculty stipend to support time on teaching and learning
  • Social Impact Learning Fellow to help facilitate community partnership development, logistics, and reflection activities
  • Private consultation and access to 130+ projects to determine the best Social Impact Practicum(s) for your course
  • Dedicated faculty-community partner liaison at Dartmouth's Center for Social Impact to coordinate SIP communication
  • Ongoing support from DCAL, Instructional Design, and other on-campus partners, as needed