International Internships: United Nations

International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court (ICC) announced the launching of the Internship Program and the Visiting Professionals Program of the ICC for nationals of the States Parties (including Australia). These programs will give participants an in-depth understanding of the ICC's objectives and challenges, and will provide participants with sound practical knowledge of its work of the ICC. For the Internship Program the Court welcomes highly motivated young candidates with outstanding academic qualifications to serve for a period between three and six months.The Visiting Professionals Program targets seasoned professionals with particular expertise in areas relevant to the functions of the Court to serve for a period between one and three months. Interns and visiting professionals will not be remunerated for their work. However, the ICC is in the position to bear the travel expenses and to pay a monthly stipend of EUR 950 in order to cover costs of living in The Hague.

For further information on the programmes including the application procedure and the eligibility requirements, visit: http://www.icc-cpi.int/recruitment/cc1g.html

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

The Internship Programme of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia offers professionals, graduate students and undergraduate students who are in their final stages of education the possibility to enhance their professional training in the unique environment of an international court. The Internship Programme is open to those candidates who have an educational background in a number of areas, including law, journalism, translation and interpretation, and information technology. In addition to participating in the day-to-day activities, Interns are invited to attend lectures, and other activities which all have particular relevance to the work of the Tribunal.

For further information go to the ICTY internships website at http://www.un.org/icty/pratical-e/index.htm or contact Saskia Huntjens-Hucklenbruch (hucklenbruch.icty@un.org) of the Human Resources Section.
Successful Intern applicant shares her experience

International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

The purposes of the internship programme of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea are to give the participants the opportunity to gain an understanding of the work and functions of the Tribunal and to enable the Tribunal and its Members to benefit from the assistance of persons with relevant knowledge and skills in areas within the scope of activities of the Tribunal. Participants in the programme will be expected to be able to contribute to the work of the Tribunal in the fields of, inter alia, the law of the sea, public international law, international organizations and international relations, political science, public information, publications and library science, and translation.

For further information, please visit: http://www.itlos.org/general_information/employ/employ_en.shtml.

Permanent Court of Arbitration (The Hague)

Internships are available for three-month periods commencing on January 1, April 1, July 1 or October 1. Internships are available for (preferably) final year law students; fellowships for qualified graduates. Fellowships are available for law graduates holding an LL.B. or J.D. degree, or equivalent. Although bar admission is not a requirement for acceptance as a research fellow, for further extensions of such fellowships (equivalent to placement as assistant counsel, subject to vacancy), bar admission is required. For fellowships and internships fluency in English and/or French is essential; additional language skills (especially Chinese, Arabic, Spanish, Russian) are an advantage. Payment is modest: €100 per week for cost of living + €300 per month as housing allowance.

For further information visit: http://pca-cpa.org/showpage.asp?pag_id=1047

Special Court for Sierra Leone

The Special Court is mandated to prosecute persons who bear the greatest responsibility for serious violations of international humanitarian law and Sierra Leonean law committed in the territory of Sierra Leone since 30 November 1997. Internships are currently available in the Chambers, the Office of the Prosecutor, the Defence Office and the Registry Legal Office.

For further information and an application form, visit www.sc-sl.org/internships.html.

UNAIDS Internship Programme

The United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS, has internship opportunities at the offices in Geneva, Switzerland. The purpose of granting internships is to enable graduate students to participate in the work of UNAIDS, and enable them to deepen their knowledge and understanding of UNAIDS' goals, policies and activities. Eligibility to participate is normally confined to persons who are engaged in a course of study leading to an additional formal qualification in an approved graduate programme. The unit receiving the intern is responsible for the development of a relevant programme for the duration of the internship and interns are expected to devote themselves full-time to the work assigned to them. The duration of an internship is limited to a minimum of six weeks and a maximum of three months.

For further information, visit: http://www.unaids.org/en/careers/internships/default.asp

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Internships for graduate students are available at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). These internships are intended to: a) increase the intern's understanding of current human rights issues at the international level and give them an insight into the work of the United Nations and OHCHR in particular; and b) provide OHCHR and the United Nations Human Rights mechanisms with the assistance and contribution of outstanding young students or graduates. Closing dates for applications are 30 April for the May/June selection and 31 October for the November/December selection.

For further information visit: http://www.unhchr.ch/html/hchr/genif.htm

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

The UNHRC's primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees around the world. Internships at UNHCR are offered throughout the year, depending on the availability of meaningful assignments and the needs and capacity of units/offices to receive and supervise interns. They will normally last no less than two months and no more than six months.

For further information visit: http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home?page=admin&id=3b8a31f94

World Trade Organisation

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world's trading nations. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business. The WTO secretariat maintains a limited internship programme for post-graduate university students wishing to gain practical experience and deeper knowledge of the multilateral trading system. Internship assignments given to interns are intended to enhance interns' knowledge and understanding of the WTO and of trade policy more generally. However, the needs of the Division recruiting an intern will be paramount in determining the precise nature of assignments. Intake to the programme is on a continuing basis, with no specific recruitment period.

For further information, visit: http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/vacan_e/intern_e.htm