Eligibility: 
To participate in the 2025 NextGen Leaders Program, you must: 

• Be either a current undergraduate, graduate, or law student (enrolled and actively attending classes) or a recent graduate (no earlier than 2023) of an accredited North American or South American college or university. 
• Self-identify as an individual with any type of disability
• Be located in North or South America
• Possess all proper and necessary work authorization documents for work in the United States and/or your desired country of employment
• Be fluent in both verbal and written English for the purposes of general business correspondence and communication with your mentor

Disability:IN does not discriminate based on race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, and marital status. 

All applications require a resume upload (.docx or .pdf) and LinkedIn profile. 

The NextGen Leaders Program is a competitive, discretion-based program that receives more applications than can be accepted. If you are selected, you will receive an invitation and participation agreement that must be completed to confirm your participation in the program. 

This online application must be completed by the end of day 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. No exceptions or extensions will be granted.

The NextGen Leaders Program has two components: 

1.   1. NextGen Virtual Mentoring Program

A six-month mentorship program for college students and recent graduates with disabilities. The program connects NextGen Leaders with experienced professionals from Disability:IN’s Corporate Partners, creating supportive relationships to help navigate searching for a job. NextGen Leader mentees will gain access to and mentors from Corporate Partners, however there is no guarantee that NextGen Leaders will receive a job offer as a result of participating in the program. Matches are based on availability of mentors across different occupational fields, and there is no guarantee that your mentor will be from your preferred industry.

Note: Once matched with a mentor from a Corporate Partner, you may be required to complete additional releases or agreements with the Corporate Partner as part of their internal process.  

2. NextGen Talent Accelerator

A select group of NextGen Leaders will also be chosen to attend the 2025 Disability: IN Global Conference & Expo from July 12-17, 2025, at the Gaylord Palms in Kissimmee, Florida.

If selected, you’ll have the opportunity to engage in two days of pre-conference skills building, leadership development and networking on July 12-14 prior to attending the full conference July 15-17 alongside more than 3,000 disability inclusion champions from across the globe. 

Participating NextGen Leaders can meet and network with corporate partners from across industries through interactive development workshops, facilitated networking and matchmaking sessions, resume building activities and more.

Disability:IN will cover all costs for conference registration, reasonable accommodations, and standard travel (airfare, hotel, and meals) for approximately 75 NextGen Leaders who are selected to attend the conference. NOTE: Vocational Rehabilitation consumers, Disability:IN will engage with State Vocational Rehabilitation for some reimbursement opportunities. 

Not all applicants will be selected to attend the conference since it is a highly competitive, discretion-based process. 

NextGen Talent Accelerator Goals:

• Build NextGen Leaders' professional skills for the private employment sector
• Help businesses identify talented individuals with disabilities to hire
• Secure interview and networking opportunities with Disability:IN Corporate Partners  
• Collaborate with other NextGen Leaders as part of the Innovation Lab (iLab) design competition
• Increase NextGen Leader confidence as job and internship seekers 

The NextGen Leaders Program is highly selective and receives approximately 1,000 applications each year with only about 400 selected to participate. Thus, submission of an application does not guarantee acceptance. pplication.

If selected, you will be required to complete a Code of Conduct. 

Review a list of our Disability:IN corporate partners here. You will be asked to rank 10 companies in order of your interest.

* An asterisk notates a required question or field. 

NOTE:  Marked (“**”) questions below are asked due to data reporting requirements associated with the program’s funding grant.  

NextGen Leaders selected to attend conference are expected to attend the pre-conference and conference sessions in their entirety. 

Always conduct yourself in a professional manner during events.

Failure to meet the expectations outlined above may result in the cancellation of conference attendance and funding.