What is Calbright Career Bridge?
Calbright Career Bridge provides Calbright College program completers with paid micro-internship opportunities. Using Riipen’s platform, Calbright College program completers engage in employer-led projects that allow them to apply their classroom knowledge to real-world scenarios. These projects help participants develop both technical and durable skills while gaining practical experience. Employers benefit by accessing highly skilled participants ready to contribute to their organizations.
Why is Calbright Career Bridge important for participants?
This program offers participants:
Paid, hands-on experience through 40-hour remote projects
The opportunity to apply learned skills in real-world settings
Access to professional networks
A digital portfolio to showcase the work
Enhanced employability through industry-aligned projects
Am I an eligible employer?
Eligible employers:
Have a presence in California (employees located in the state)
Operate in any industry with project opportunities aligned with Calbright Career Bridge disciplines (Cybersecurity, Data Analysis, HR Learning & Development, HR Talent Acquisition)
Employers may not be:
An elected official
Part of an organization that engages in partisan political activities; and/or, a federal, provincial, territorial and municipal government
You will be asked to verify your company information when joining the Calbright Career Bridge program. You can find out more about our employer verification process here.
What is the employer registration process?
Join the Calbright Career Bridge portal.
Create a Riipen employer account and complete the company profile.
Verify that your company meets the eligibility criteria.
Submit projects for review and approval.
Once approved, your project will be matched with a team of up to five participants.
On joining the program, you will be asked to verify that you meet the Calbright Career Bridge eligibility criteria, as outlined in our Terms and Conditions here. For more info on the verification process, view this article here.
What does a Calbright Career Bridge project need to include?
Projects should:
Align with the program areas: Cybersecurity, Data Analysis, HR Learning & Development, or HR Talent Acquisition
Provide 40 hours of structured work per participant with clear deliverables.
Be completed within 2 to 6 weeks
Provide mentorship for participants: At least 5 hours of mentorship throughout the project with suggested weekly 30-60-minute meetings
At the conclusion of the project, employers should submit individual feedback to participants through the Riipen platform.
For more information on how to create and submit a project for Calbright Career Bridge, you can consult this article.
How many projects can I submit and how many participants can I take on?
There is no limit to the number of projects an employer can submit. Each project will be matched with a team of 3-5 participants, ensuring adequate support and completion within the designated timeframe.
What if my project requires more than 40 hours of work?
Projects are assigned to teams of up to 5 participants, which means your project should be able to be completed in 200 hours total. If you think you will need more time, we recommend splitting the work and posting multiple projects to work with more than one Calbright Career Bridge team.
What if my project timeline needs to change?
Employers set the start and end dates within the program’s rolling cohorts. Each participant is expected to contribute 40 hours to the project. A project timeline can be adjusted, as long as it still meets those requirements and if both the employer and the participant team are in agreement to do so. To adjust the project timeline that is recorded on the Riipen platform, the employer can make a request from the Settings page on the match. Instructions for how to do this can be found here. The Calbright Career Bridge team will review and approve new date change requests within two business days.
How do participants get connected to projects?
Participants will be placed into a team of 3-5 and will be matched to your project by the Calbright Career Bridge team. Participants must start and complete the project work through the Riipen platform in order to receive their stipend payment. You are welcome to communicate with them outside of the platform as well. Participants will need a dedicated contact to answer questions and provide access to any resources they need throughout the project.
What additional supports are available to participants?
Alongside mentorship from the employer project host, Calbright Career Bridge participants have access to:
Resume assistance and job search support from Calbright College Career Services
Content support from Calbright College instructional faculty
Project support via email and live chat from the Riipen platform team
Am I required to pay participants?
No. Calbright Career Bridge is fully subsidized. Each participant receives a $1,000 stipend upon successful completion of their project, funded and processed by Calbright College.
How does the funding work?
Calbright Career Bridge is different from traditional wage subsidy or grant funding programs that you might be used to. Calbright College pays participants directly, which means that funding is attached to participants, not projects. Stipends are not locked in until a participant team has been matched to and started your project. Stipends are sent to participants as a one-time payment, which means that participants only receive payment upon successful completion of projects. Participants who do not fully complete the project will not be paid. Participants will not be permitted to take on more than one project.
Are participants employees of the organization?
No. participants are neither employees of the organization they do a project for, nor of Riipen or Calbright College. As such, participants do not qualify for any benefits and will not obtain any record of employment from either organizations. Upon joining the Calbright Career Bridge program, Riipen will require participants to submit their legal name, social security number, and mailing address so that we can issue the appropriate tax form(s).
If I choose to submit my project to other opportunities, will those participants receive stipends?
No. While you are welcome to submit your project(s) to other courses and internship programs on Riipen, connections that you make outside of the Calbright Career Bridge program would not have the stipend attached, even if the participants are eligible. Participants will only receive a stipend if they have applied and been accepted to your project through the Calbright Career Bridge portal.
Still have questions? Reach out to us via live-chat in the avocado found in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen or via email at calbrightcareerbridge@riipen.com.