Current Openings

Graduate Research Internships

General Information About Internships

CESR takes graduate research interns periodically, and on a rolling basis. Our interns generally work part-time over the Spring and Fall semesters and full-time over the summer. Although we are eager to negotiate a relatively consistent schedule, days and hours of work are flexible. The internships are remote, as CESR maintains a virtual office. 

If you wish to apply for an internship, please send your resume to internship@cesr.org, copied to info@cesr.org. A formal cover letter is not necessary, but in your email please be sure to specify which program areas* of CESR’s work you are most interested in, and how your skills would apply. Please indicate "Graduate-Level Internship" in the subject line of your email. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. Please note we don’t have the capacity to respond to every internship inquiry, and only shortlisted applicants will be contacted for interviews.

*Note that we may also consider interns for our communications work, or our monitoring, learning and evaluation (MLE) work. Please note clearly (including in the email subject line) if these are the areas you are interested in. 

It is our policy to ensure our interns are compensated; either through direct payment of a stipend from us or through support from their academic institutions. Please note in your application if your university/institution provides financial assistance or academic credit. 

Intern responsibilities

Interns contribute substantively to the Center’s work in one or more program areas, or in communications, or MLE. In particular, program interns carry out research that analyzes trends in global policy. They also contribute to the Center’s research documenting deprivations of economic and social rights in specific countries contexts; this interdisciplinary research deploys social science and statistical methods alongside traditional techniques of human rights reporting, such as legal analysis and narrative testimony. Interns are also involved in preparing reports and other advocacy materials based on the findings of such research, to present to relevant institutions at the national, regional and United Nations level. As a small NGO, the Center has established robust partnerships with national, regional and international organizations that allow for mutual exchange of expertise. Interns may also interact with our partners, including by attending meetings and workshops, preparing or delivering presentations, authoring blogs posts and opinion pieces, etc.

Qualifications

Required

• In pursuit of a postgraduate degree in a related field, especially human rights, law, development, or economics;

• Consistent attention to detail;

• Capacity to read, write and communicate in English;

• Strong writing and communication skills, including an ability to clearly explain complex technical issues in an accessible language and synthesize and evaluate data;

• Knowledge of human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights;

• Experience in conducting research, both quantitative and qualitative;

• Capacity to work independently.

Highly desirable

• Capacity to read, write and communicate in Spanish or Arabic;

• Background knowledge on human rights monitoring methodologies;

• Background knowledge of applied macroeconomics and statistics;

• Experience with communications for social justice;

• Experience developing online resources and/or familiarity with interactive web-based or other technologies for use in social justice advocacy, such as wikis, video and audio podcasts, social networking sites, etc.

• Familiarity with resource centers and databases, especially on socio-economic and development data from various international agencies and trusted sources.

Post-graduate Fellowships

CESR periodically hosts post-graduate fellows who have been awarded funding from their university. Often, fellows will focus on a specific project, defined in consultation with CESR and their university. We do not have a formal application process for fellows. To inquire about working with us as a post-graduate fellow, please email internship@cesr.org