The Texas Public Policy Foundation is seeking intern candidates who are motivated to help the Foundation apply our guiding principles of liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise to reshape public policy in Texas. The most successful applicants are open-minded, entrepreneurial and hardworking, with good research, writing, and interpersonal skills.
An internship at the Foundation is not just another job, not just a résumé bullet. Our Foundation provides students and recent graduates the opportunity to work with some of the best free market thinkers in the country who are researching a wide range of different policy areas, and all the places those topics intersect, that impact not just Texas but the entire country.
Our interns become part of the Foundation family as the staff members share their time, knowledge, and experience with each intern class through a series of discussions that illustrate the range of places where policy decisions have a chance to change the world. All of our interns leave our Foundation with a solid understanding of all the work we do: educational outreach, policy positions, and our work to change Texas for the better.
An intern at TPPF will spend time outside the Foundation as well. As we wrap up the Texas legislative session, our interns will be a vital part of our efforts by researching policy topics according to the needs of the staff. You’ll meet staff from the offices of advocacy groups, media outlets, legislators, state agencies, and the judiciary. We also invite a handful of these folks to our offices each semester to talk to our interns about their experience and background, and the public policy process from a different perspective.
Policy Intern –
Policy interns will be assigned to one of the Foundation’s policy Centers and work directly with a Center director or policy analyst. They will attend staff meetings, meet policymakers and engage in regular policy discussions. Our interns may also have the opportunity to publish individually or in collaboration with our team, based on their individual writing talents and the needs of the Foundation. As part of your research, you’ll work closely with your center or department, polishing professional skills. Well written policy pieces may be selected to appear as a blog post, op-ed, or policy brief.
Development Intern –
In addition to our regular intern programming, Development interns will work with the Foundation’s Vice President of Development and our development team to learn the techniques of fundraising in the competitive non-profit world. As a valued member of our team, the Dev intern will:
- Help plan and participate in development events and solicitations;
- Write development materials;
- Talk with donors;
- Attend staff meetings;
- Draft donor communications;
- Process daily contributions
- Conduct donor research
Communications Intern –
Communications interns will work with the Foundation’s director of communications in writing and editing press releases, commentaries, and other media products. They’ll work with our publications team to edit and release our publications, and with our digital campaigns and analytics manager to update the website, social media, and track the success of our efforts. They will also work with media professionals, attend staff meetings, and meet policymakers.
Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to free-market principles, strong writing and communications skills, and a general understanding of government and the political process. As well, prospective interns should be entrepreneurially-minded and possess the ability to undertake research, writing, and administrative projects. Full-time and part-time policy, media, and development internships are available with a stipend of up to $500 for part-time (fall/spring only) and $1,000 for full-time (any semester). In your cover letter/email, please let us know your preference for semester.
Application Dates:
Summer 2015 – March 1st – April 30th, 2015
Fall 2015 – July 1st – August 31st, 2015
Applications for our program should include a cover letter, résumé, and short writing sample. You may also be asked to complete a short writing assignment in a narrow timeframe to be used as a baseline for your writing abilities. Be sure to specify in your cover letter what semester you are interested in joining us, and submit your application to:
Jaimie Ailshire, Office Manager