New Tactics in Human Rights Internship Program

The New Tactics in Human Rights project is a vital component of the Center for Victims of Torture. CVT’s mission is to heal the wounds of torture on individuals, their families and their communities and to stop torture worldwide. New Tactics plays a key role in the movement to end torture by strengthening human rights efforts around the world.

Torture is an issue that is connected to many human rights – the right to free speech and association, the right to a lawyer, the right to be free of cruel and inhumane treatment – and preventing torture requires effective human rights advocacy.  In its relationships with activists from more than 120 countries, New Tactics strengthens their work by sharing with them new ideas and resources, training them on strategic thinking, and connecting them with other activists for advice and support.  By helping activists evaluate possible outcomes and plan for any reprisals, strategic thinking is the first step to carrying out more effective and safer campaigns

Many of CVT’s clients are human rights activists, and for some, the healing process includes finding safe and meaningful ways of participating in the human rights movement again.  New Tactics provides hundreds of examples of ways that activists have implemented successful human rights activities.  Our project opens the door to activism by providing ideas for anyone interested in defending human rights – on any level.

Those who support CVT are also human rights activists; we want to stop torture.  New Tactics provides a network of allies and new ideas for action.

New Tactics in Human Rights is honored to receive many internship requests from outstanding students every year.  We have created the following guidelines to make the selection process as objective and fair as possible.

Internship Description

The New Tactics staff recognizes the responsibility to make an internship a meaningful learning experience for the student.  At the same time, there are general administrative and clerical functions to be performed that keep the organization functioning.  Our goal is to provide a mix of projects the meets both goals.  Typical projects may include internet research, writing, summarizing online dialogues, creating PowerPoint presentations, attending meetings and typing up notes, creating excel spreadsheets, mailing handbooks, and editing written materials.  Specific projects will vary according to current priorities and the skill and experience set of the individual intern.

Materials to Submit

•Cover Letter – include the following:

• The specific semester you want to intern
• The requirements of the internship (number of hours, reporting requirements, etc.)
• Your start and stop dates
• Whether you will already be living in the Twin Cities area or will have to look for housing
• Why you are interested in working with New Tactics
• Any specific types of projects you like and/or have experience in (research, writing, social media, videos, graphic design, websites, blogging, etc.)

•Current resume -  include the following:

• Colleges/ universities attended (undergraduate and, if applicable, graduate).  If you’re currently a student, anticipated graduation date
• Major/minor and GPA
• Other major areas of study
• Volunteer activities and/ or internship experiences
• Work experience
• Foreign languages spoken and level of proficiency (if applicable)

Send an email with the materials listed above to newtactics@cvt.org.

Review Process
After the application deadline, all applications will be reviewed and finalist candidates will be contacted for in-person interviews (or phone interviews for long-distance candidates).

The number of finalist candidates will depend on the number of internships available for a given semester according to current New Tactics projects and priorities.  After the interviews, candidates will be notified according to the schedule below regarding their acceptance status for the upcoming semester.

Criteria

Applications will be considered according to the following criteria:

• Relevant coursework and GPA
• Relevant volunteer, work or internship experiences
• Year in school (juniors and above are preferred but sophomores with relevant experience or skills will be considered and are encouraged to apply)
• Foreign language proficiency (desirable but not required)
• Number of hours available to devote to the internship
• Completeness and organization of materials submitted

In-person interviewees will additionally be evaluated on the following criteria:

• Flexibility
• Ability to work independently
• Enthusiasm and innovative thinking
• Other criteria specific to individual projects as needed

Timeline for the application process

Fall Semester Internship
Application Deadline - July 1   
Interviews - July 1-15 
Notification - July 15

January Mid-Term Internship 
Application Deadline - November 1
Interviews - Nov 1-15
Notification - November 15

Spring Semester Internship
Application Deadline - December 1 
Interviews - Dec 1-15
Notification - December 15  
 
Summer Internship
Application Deadline - March 1  
Interviews - March 1-15
Notification - March