Leadership Opportunities
Frequently Asked Questions
Timeline
Our application for the 2025-2026 school year will open on February, 28, 2025 at 12:00pm ET and close on May 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT. The priority deadline for applications is April 15, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
For our summer positions, Event Specialists and Research Fellows, the deadline to apply is April 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
The priority deadline is April 1, 2025, at 11:59pm PT. After this deadline we will begin interviews and will send offers on a rolling basis until the final deadline or the position is filled, whichever comes first. You may continue to apply up until the final deadline of May 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
We hope to have all positions filled no later than May 23, 2025. We will notify all applicants of the status of their application via email no later than May 25, 2025.
Eligibility
To be eligible for a leadership opportunity at The Neurodiversity Alliance, you must:
- Be between the ages of 16 and 26 and enrolled in high school or college for the 2025-26 school year, or have graduated within the past two years at time of application. The graduation and age requirement does not apply to alumni positions.
- Have a connection to Neurodiversity, either through lived experiences or through allyship. Priority is given to folks who identify as neurodivergent, including one or more challenges related to learning, such as Dyslexia, ADHD, Processing Disorders, Autism, or similar learning disabilities or challenges for roles where lived experience is critical, such as Student Ambassadors.
- Be available to attend our in-person National Neurodiversity Leadership Summit in Denver, CO on August 7-10, 2025 (all expenses paid for by The ND Alliance).
- Be able to commit at least 10 hours per month for Academic Year roles and 10 hours per week for Summer and Summit roles, and meet the requirements of the specific role they are applying for (see individual roles for details).
- Pass a criminal history check and complete an IRS Form W-9 prior to the start date.
We define neurodivergent in the context of challenges with one or more of the key processes related to learning and cognition. To be eligible, a recipient must have been identified as having one or more of the following:
- Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, Dyspraxia, or similar
- ADHD, ADD, Executive Functioning, or similar
- Auditory or Visual Processing Disorders, Slow Processing, or similar
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Aspergers, or similar
- Aphasia, Dysphasia, Stuttering or similar
- Non-Verbal Learning Disability (NVLD) or similar
- Any other challenge that falls under specific learning disabilities or autism
We welcome allies to apply for positions where lived experience is not central to the role, such as our Student Ambassadors.
Yes, students must be between the ages of 16 to 26 years old at any time during the 2025-2026 academic year. For 2025-2026, that means that anyone born between June 30, 1999 and July 1, 2009 is eligible to apply.
The exception to that is for our alumni positions, where there is no age requirement.
No, but you must be able to submit a W9 form to receive payment.
Yes, these leadership roles are intended for students enrolled at a college or university located within the United States.
Application Details
The application is now available within The Neurodiversity Alliance online portal and mobile app. Once logged in, look for the link to the “Leadership Application” on the left menu bar.
If you are already registered with The Neurodiversity Alliance, click here to log in.
If you are not yet registered, registration is free and easy - get started today!
Our application for the 2025-2026 school year will open on February, 28, 2025 at 12:00pm ET and close on May 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT. The priority deadline for applications is April 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
For our summer positions, Event Specialists and Research Fellows, the deadline to apply is April 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
To be fair to applicants, we are very strict on the due date. We cannot accept late applications or materials and we aren't responsible for hardware malfunctions, bad internet connections, or other conditions which might prevent applicants from submitting an application on time. No applications will be accepted after May 1, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.
A photo, screen shot, or scanned copy of your documents are great! Just make sure that the entire document is visible and any text is not blurred or obscured.
You can submit your responses by either uploading a document with your written responses or sharing a link to a video. The essay word counts and video lengths below are only recommendations, not firm limits. Feel free to take what space is necessary for you to answer thoroughly.
Written essay responses are typically between 250-750 words per prompt and should be submitted by uploading your response in a .doc or .pdf format. Google Docs are a free and easy way to write your essay responses. To export a Google Doc as a PDF once it is complete:
- Open the Google Doc you want to export
- Select “File”
- Select “Download”
- Choose “PDF Document (.pdf)” as the output format
- Select “Save As” in the download pop-up
- Choose a location to save the PDF file
Video responses are typically between 2-5 minutes per prompt and should be submitted by sharing a link to the video either as a Drive, Dropbox, or iCloud file or on a platform such as YouTube. YouTube is a free and easy way to upload a video and create a shareable link that only those with the link can access. To share a video on YouTube via an unlisted link:
- Sign in to YouTube
- Select “Create a video or post”
- Select “Upload video”
- Choose “Unlisted” from the privacy settings
- Publish the video
- Copy the link to the video
Accommodations and support are available! Please send us an email at [email protected] and we will be happy to assist you.
You will receive a confirmation email once your application has been submitted. If your confirmation email does not arrive, check your junk-mail folder for the misplaced email. If necessary, make sure that you completed all submission steps. If neither option above corrects the problem, contact us at [email protected] to confirm your submission.
Any errors will be flagged in red when you go to submit. Correct the error(s) and re-submit. A confirmation text screen will appear and an email notification with additional information will be sent immediately upon successful submission of the application. If you are still unable to submit your application, contact us at [email protected] for assistance.
Payment & Terms
Stipends are paid on the last day of each month throughout your designated term.
Your offer will include paperwork to complete to ensure timely payment. We will need the following:
- Legal Name
- Birth Date
- Phone Number
- Tax ID Number: SSN or ITIN
- Address (if selecting payment by check)
- Banking Information (if selecting payment by direct deposit)
- Signed W9 Form
Academic positions are a 10-month commitment beginning August 1, 2025 and continuing until June 1, 2026. During this commitment, you will be expected to:
- Meet regularly with your cohort and staff mentor (likely twice a month, 60-minutes per meeting)
- Commit 10 hours per month on various projects and assignments related to the role to be assigned and tracked with your staff mentor
- Attend the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit from August 7-10, 2025.
- Travel, meals, and expenses related to attending the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit will be paid for by The Neurodiversity Alliance
Summer positions are a 2-month commitment beginning June 15, 2025 and continuing until August 15, 2025. During this commitment, you will be expected to:
- Meet regularly with your staff mentor, likely once a week.
- Dedicate up to 10 additional hours per week to meet their assigned goals.
- Attend and work the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit from August 5-10, 2025.
- Travel, meals, and expenses related to attending the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit will be paid for by The Neurodiversity Alliance.
The Event Intern position is a 1-week commitment beginning August 4, 2025 and ending August 11, 2025. During this commitment, you will be expected to:
- Attend and work the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit from August 6-10, 2025.
- Travel, meals, and expenses related to attending the Neurodiversity Alliance National Summit will be paid for by The Neurodiversity Alliance.
- Event Interns will be able to attend sessions related to their own leadership development as an attendee and will also be required to work to fulfill logistic requirements. Exact sessions to attend will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
The types of projects and assignments vary based on the role and more information will be shared upon starting.
Attendance at the National Summit is a requirement and is critical for proper training and community building. If you have questions regarding your specific situation, please email [email protected].
We are committed to ensuring that those in our leadership positions are receiving fair pay for the work they do.
Academic year roles receive a stipend of $200 a month for 10 hours of work per month, which works out to $20 per hour.
Summer roles receive a stipend of $200 per week for 10 hours of work per week, which works out to $20 per hour.
Academic year roles will be from August 1, 2025 and continuing until June 1, 2026.
Summer roles will be from June 15, 2025 and continuing until August 15, 2025.
Summit roles will be from August 4, 2025 and ending August 11, 2025
Yes! We love seeing our leaders come back to join us for another year. Please make sure you check the eligibility requirements to ensure you are eligible to apply again.
It depends. We have done our best to outline below, but please let us know if you have questions by emailing us at [email protected].
During the academic year, you may only hold one national leadership position. For example, you would not be able to be a Student Ambassador and Outreach Coordinator.
If you hold a campus leadership position during the academic year, such as Chapter Leader, or Club Leader, you can also hold a national leadership position, such as Content Creator or National Student Advisory Council.
You may hold both a summer position and an academic year position.
If you are a Campus Leader or National Leader, you may not hold a summit position due to the requirements training requirements while attending the national summit.
Yes! Scholarship recipients are welcome to apply for any role they are eligible for.
Additional Questions?
If you have other questions, please contact us.