Center for
International Studies
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phrj@mit.edu

Summer Internships - Application Information

The MIT Program on Human Rights and Justice (PHRJ) is pleased to announce fully-funded summer internship opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students at MIT. The internships, usually between 8 and 12 weeks, can be arranged with non-governmental or inter-governmental organizations, social movements, or business organizations concerned with issues related to human rights, justice and sustainable development, broadly conceived. The organizations may range from those dealing with human rights through advocacy and policy (such as Human Rights Watch or Physicians for Human Rights) to those engaging in direct action to change human rights conditions at the grass roots level (such as the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights). The purpose of the internships is to provide MIT students the opportunity to study human rights issues first-hand at the field level or through applied research.

The Graduate Student Council (GSC) passed funding for an additional graduate-level fellowship, which will provide another means for graduate students to work on social and community issues related to human rights. The fellowship support also reaffirms the GSC's commitment to learning through service. Under the resolution, GSC will fully sponsor one summer fellowship for community projects in the country and abroad, through the PHRJ at CIS. The funding of the fellowship was made possible through a career fair that raised a record amount of revenue, organized, to a large extent, by the GSC. It is hoped that the GSC will be able to sustain this fellowship program in the coming years as well. Fellowships are open only to current MIT graduate students.

The PHRJ Summer Internship and the GSC Fellowship provide modest stipends for use towards travel and living expenses, a total not exceeding $5,000. The PHRJ staff can assist interested students in obtaining information on potential organizations for internships around the world. Students may also identify organizations through their own initiative.

The successful applicants will undergo a one-day orientation in the spring. Following the completion of the internships, the students are required to present a short report about their activities, the organization and the contribution to the student's academic life. They may also be invited to make oral presentations about their experience at the PHRJ during the fall semester.

To apply, the following documents must be received, along with a cover letter, by April 25, 2008, at the PHRJ office (Room 9-426) or via email (phrj@mit.edu):

• a title and a short description of the projectthe nature of activities to be performed during the internship
• a paragraph of how the experience will contribute to the applicant’s academic life at MIT or professional life thereafter
• a paragraph explaining how the internship links to human rights and sustainable development

5. a preliminary budget, including any other sources of support;
6. two letters of recommendation, at least one of which is from an MIT faculty member in support of the applicant’s intellectual and emotional suitability to perform the internship.
N.B. If the internship experience is intended to qualify as fieldwork toward a graduate thesis, students are asked to provide a letter of support from their thesis advisor. This may count towards one of the two letters of recommendation.

For further information, please contact the PHRJ at phrj@mit.edu.