As the winter season starts to wind down, students from across the country are beginning their search of summer internships. Summer internships are a great way to gain new experiences, travel to places you’ve always wanted to visit, and meet new people—all while gaining valuable skills that will give you the edge in securing employment in the future.

Landing a summer internship can seem like a daunting task. What am I interested in? How do I apply? If you have arrived at these questions, you are already on the right path! Most companies offer students the chance to play a role in their daily functions and learn about their work environment. For those interested in global poverty reduction, human rights activism, and other service based careers, here are potential summer internship opportunities for you

Political Affairs Internship, The Borgen Project

• Meet with members of Congress and/or Congressional staffers in your State and District to discuss global poverty issues
• Represent The Borgen Project and various business, political, and community events
• Mobilize individuals to contact their members of Congress in support of anti-poverty legislation and assist with fundraising
• For more information on how to apply please visit Telecommute Internships.

Summer Internship Program, American Red Cross

• Get introduced to the mission of the American Red Cross with real-world work experience in a non-profit
• Assist with day-to-day functions building reports, presentations, guides etc.
• Choose from a diverse selection of positions including human resources, government relations, humanitarian services, public health & safety, biomedical services, disaster services, finance, marketing and more!
• For more information on how to apply, visit Red Cross.

Community Engagement Intern Program, Feeding Children Everywhere

• Get hands on experience battling on the front lines of the fight against hunger. Recruit volunteers nationwide for various “Hunger Projects”
• Build and lead programs while performing community outreach
• Travel to different “Hunger Projects” and network with various volunteers while preparing and packaging meals to feed hungry children
• Please visit their Intern Program for more information and locations.

Intern, ONE Campaign

• ONE offers students a diverse experience working in grassroots mobilization, field organizing, digital projects, communications, ans global operations
• Interns will have to perform research and fact-checking, trips and events preparation, collection of press clips, database management, and administrative tasks
• For more information please visit ONE.org.

Student Internship Program, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

• USAID offers a variety of summer internship positions in the Bureau for Legislative and Public Affairs, the Office of the General Counsel, the Office of Transition Initiatives, the Bureau of Africa and more.
• Interns will be required to conduct research, draft program memoranda and other documents
• Facilitate meetings and special events, attend program discussions in various government agencies and communicate with stakeholders and public
• Work in fields like agriculture, education, health, environment, democracy, conflict prevention, and humanitarian assistance

These summer internships offer students from diverse backgrounds with various interests a chance to develop new skills and gain valuable experience working to alleviate social problems of today.

View telecommuting internships at The Borgen Project.

– Sunny Bhatt

Sources: The Borgen Project, Red Cross, Feeding Children Everywhere, Idealist.org
Photo: Wdet