Help Develop Policy Professionals

Summer Internships

Test Drive Our Students, Build Relationships, Leverage your Experience with Student Energy and Ideas

Each summer over 300 Harvard Kennedy School students earn valuable experience, develop new skills, and learn about new fields and industries by pursuing meaningful public service internships.

Students in our Master in Public Administration/International Development (MPA/ID) program are required to spend the summer between their first and second years working as interns on development projects, most often in developing countries. Employers who hire these MPA/ID Interns have the chance to develop relationships with students who are on their way to becoming policy makers and leaders in the field.

MPP and MPA students are not required to complete summer internships. However, the vast majority decide that a summer internship will not only allow them to utilize skills and talents they have developed in their first year at the Harvard Kennedy School, but also will better prepare and position them for their full-time job search. MPP and MPA Interns work in a wide variety of organizations, including state and local government, consulting firms, foreign government agencies, multilateral organizations, and various agencies in the U.S. federal government.

Summer internships generally last between eight and twelve weeks from late May through late August. Even if your organization is not able to offer a salary to a summer intern, we encourage you to advertise your opportunities as students may have access to support offered by The Harvard Kennedy School for unpaid or minimally paid summer internships.

For guidance in creating a suitable internship opportunity for our students, please contact our Employer Services team or consult our HKS Internship Guidelines (link to pdf). When your job description is ready, you may post the opportunity in JACK.