carpecc Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 I was doing some research on the summer internship for those doing an IR MA and it looks like a lot of them are completely unpaid and have to rely on external funding. Is this true? I mean, I can totally understand how doing a project with an NGO might be unpaid, but are even the private sector internships COMPLETELY unpaid? Is this the norm for this type of degree? What about if the internship is in DC and doesn't require transnational flights? Are there at least housing stipends by the host org? Maybe I'm being naive here but it came as a surprise to me to hear that most internships are unpaid. Any advice from people doing these degrees or who are in the know would be helpful.
Mal83 Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 I'll be at George Mason (northern VA) for Global Affairs this Fall...or if by some chance I get off the waitlist for ID at The Elliott school then that's where I'll be going for sure... I haven't looked too much at internships yet, I have a feeling that a lot of them are not paid, but I'm sure some of them are. Your school should be able to at least direct you in that regard. However, I plan on getting a regular job, of course hopefully related to the field, but regardless I can't take something that won't bring in any income. Have you looked at the website called Idealist.org? There are pages and pages of job openings of all levels for NGOs, non-profits, and the like, for full-time and part-time. I believe there are internships openings on there too, but you'll have to check to see if they're paid or not.
BMCGirl10 Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 I was doing some research on the summer internship for those doing an IR MA and it looks like a lot of them are completely unpaid and have to rely on external funding. Is this true? I mean, I can totally understand how doing a project with an NGO might be unpaid, but are even the private sector internships COMPLETELY unpaid? Is this the norm for this type of degree? What about if the internship is in DC and doesn't require transnational flights? Are there at least housing stipends by the host org? Maybe I'm being naive here but it came as a surprise to me to hear that most internships are unpaid. Any advice from people doing these degrees or who are in the know would be helpful. Most internships in DC are unpaid unless you're lucky enough to find one that specifies a stipend or salary. I've had four DC internships. Internship A at non-profit: Unpaid, Internship B at govt contractor: Stipend of $750 a month (impossible to live on), Internship C at international dev firm: $8.25 an hour (ridiculous), Internship D: $11 an hour (international consulting firm). None of these internships came with a housing allowance but one did give me a mass transit subsidy. Good luck.
BMCGirl10 Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 (edited) Sorry double post. Edited April 26, 2011 by BMCGirl10
Mal83 Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 Most internships in DC are unpaid unless you're lucky enough to find one that specifies a stipend or salary. I've had four DC internships. Internship A at non-profit: Unpaid, Internship B at govt contractor: Stipend of $750 a month (impossible to live on), Internship C at international dev firm: $8.25 an hour (ridiculous), Internship D: $11 an hour (international consulting firm). None of these internships came with a housing allowance but one did give me a mass transit subsidy. Good luck. Did you specifically seek out internships? Are these connected to your school somehow? I just want an actual job in order to supplement my loans.
carpecc Posted April 27, 2011 Author Posted April 27, 2011 Thanks for the insight fellas. Looks like I'll be starting the internship search for next summer very early.
BMCGirl10 Posted April 27, 2011 Posted April 27, 2011 Did you specifically seek out internships? Are these connected to your school somehow? I just want an actual job in order to supplement my loans. None of those internships were connected to my college. I also didn't get academic credit for them. I sought them out on my own through networking and idealist.org.
HopefulIR Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 I'm doing a government internship this summer: paid, 16 an hour + free housing.
Mal83 Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 I'm doing a government internship this summer: paid, 16 an hour + free housing. If you don't mind me asking, how did this come about? Is it something you found on your own or do you have a connection somewhere? 16 an hour seems like a rarity.
HopefulIR Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 (edited) If you don't mind me asking, how did this come about? Is it something you found on your own or do you have a connection somewhere? 16 an hour seems like a rarity. A little of both. Korbel's career center puts on a multitude of workshops/info sessions every quarter. They were very aggressive about us getting internships right from the get-go. There were workshops on cover letter writing, resumes, interviews; the works. They put together a career fair, of which many agencies attended. The CIA and State Department come every few months with their info session/interviews. However, in the end you're still the one going to USAJOBS.gov and applying online yourself since it's government. Most agencies have, in some form or another, a paid internship system. The FBI, for example, have both honors and volunteer intern programs; the honors interns get paid and the volunteers do not. I have a few colleagues that applied for NGA, and they are getting paid, as are some State Department interns. There are a few State ones that are unpaid though. Another one got a DIA paid internship, but one got a CIA (but she was hush hush about it.) If you're an attractive candidate, they'll pay you. Have a great resume/cover letter/interview, and you'll make it. 16/hr was what I got automatically due to OPM pay scales. Edited April 28, 2011 by HopefulIR
flyers29 Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 If you don't mind me asking, how did this come about? Is it something you found on your own or do you have a connection somewhere? 16 an hour seems like a rarity. SOME government agencies offer paid internships with a livable wage, though they're obviously pretty competitive. IR Internships are unpaid on the whole, though.
HopefulIR Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 SOME government agencies offer paid internships with a livable wage, though they're obviously pretty competitive. IR Internships are unpaid on the whole, though. Oh hai Flyers. How are ya? He's right about the competitiveness. While some of us got these great internships, many did not. I know a couple that are going back home and applying for local police this summer. I should note, that the ones that got great internships were particularly competitive w/ some work experience between undergrad/grad. The ones that did not got internships came straight out of undergrad. So take that gap year kiddos!
BMCGirl10 Posted April 28, 2011 Posted April 28, 2011 Oh hai Flyers. How are ya? He's right about the competitiveness. While some of us got these great internships, many did not. I know a couple that are going back home and applying for local police this summer. I should note, that the ones that got great internships were particularly competitive w/ some work experience between undergrad/grad. The ones that did not got internships came straight out of undergrad. So take that gap year kiddos! I would agree with this. I'm in the Gap Year (or two) between undergrad & grad. I was lucky to find some paid internships but it's definitely true that the more plum positions go to students with graduate studies & more experience under their belt.
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