Internship and Volunteer Opportunities
General Intern Information and Requirements
- EFF does not have paid internships and cannot provide stipends (except for specific things, like travel to an EFF event you are assisting at, etc.)
- EFF is not accredited to sponsor J visas.
Internship Program for Law Students
Updated 11/04/09: Our deadlines for accepting legal internship applications are as follows:
Spring Semester: Nov 15
Summer: March 15
Fall Semester: July 15
Applications will be evaluated as they are received. Our internship program is based in our San Francisco office; we no longer accept internship applications for our DC office.
Job Description
Interns assist in all aspects of litigation, including legal research, factual investigation, and drafting of memoranda and briefs, while also helping with policy research, client counseling, and the development of public education materials. EFF's docket ranges across the technological and legal landscape, from online fair use of copyrighted materials to electronic voting to the PATRIOT Act; take a look at http://www.eff.org/legal/victories/ or http://www.eff.org/legal/active_legal.html for details about our work preserving constitutional values in the digital world.
Summer internships are full-time, 40 hours per week minimum, and last 10-14 weeks. School-year internships are part-time, 16 hours per week minimum, and last 10-12 weeks. Internships are available at our office in San Francisco for all legal issues. We do not offer remote internships. Internships are generally unpaid; therefore arrangements should be made with the student's law school for work/study stipends. In addition, some small stipends for summer internships may be available on the basis of need through the generous sponsorship of Day Casebeer Madrid & Batchelder LLP.
Qualifications
Law students of all levels are encouraged to apply, including students enrolled in non-US schools. Applicants should have a demonstrated interest in and enthusiasm for civil liberties or technology-related legal issues, along with excellent research and writing skills and the initiative and energy to see projects to completion in a fast-moving environment. (Being a bit of a geek may help, but isn't required!)
Application
Who needs paper? Just send an email to legalinterns@eff.org with the subject line "Intern Applicant: [Your Name]." We'd like a single email with your resume and writing sample attached, as .doc, .pdf, .rtf or .txt files; no WordPerfect, please. The body of the email should contain your "cover letter," explaining why you want to work with EFF and why we should want to work with you, followed by three references. Note that writing samples on civil liberties and/or intellectual property issues are highly preferred.
Non-Legal Internship and Volunteer Opportunities
Media/Development Intern
EFF is looking for a summer intern to help in our development and media departments. This is an unpaid, full-time position.
Projects will include:
- Working on our annual report and contacting major donors and foundations (40% of time);
- Assisting with membership fulfillment and bulk mailing (40% of time); and
- Identifying and organizing press clippings (20% of time).
Excellent writing and editing skills, strong organizational abilities, and the capacity to take instruction and run with it is a must. Interest in development and/or public relations as a career is a plus, as is knowledge and familiarity with EFF's issues. To apply, please send a resume, cover letter, and writing sample to Alyssa Ralston, Development Associate, at alyssa@eff.org.
