Internship Programme
Calling period currently closed.
Next calling period will open in JUNE 2013 for Internship period March-July 2014.
Internship Programme
The NATO Defense College Internship Programme, introduced in 2005, aims to provide a small number of current students or recent graduates (degree obtained no longer than 12 months ago) with the opportunity to “intern” with the NDC in Rome.
Candidates studying Political Science, International Relations, Security Studies, Library Science, Media Studies, Journalism, Computer Science (or related studies) are invited to apply.
Internships will, in principle, last 5 months, and a total of 8 candidates will be selected every year.
Shortlist completed, interviews scheduled
The NATO Defense College Internship Programme has three main objectives:
- To provide interns with an opportunity to learn from the NATO community and get a better understanding and a more balanced view of the organization.
- To contribute to creating a more diverse workforce.
- To expand understanding of NATO in Alliance countries.
What does NATO Defense College offer?
Interns will benefit by experiencing an international organization from the inside while substantiating their curriculum vitae.
Internships are offered in the following areas:
- Research Division (RD)
- Academic Programmes - Operations Divisions (AOD)
- Academic Programmes - Curriculum Planning Branch (CPB)
- Public Affairs Office (PAO)
- Library (Library and Knowledge Centre)
- Communication & Information Services.
Research Division (RD)
Candidates applying for internships within the Research Division will be required to support the RD in all tasks typical for a research institution (organization of events, research support, and administrative tasks). More specifically:
- provide administrative support to the Research Assistants (RA) during the organisation of Seminars, Workshops and Conferences, as well as issuing Travel Orders, Travel Claims, and other electronic forms when needed;
- take minutes during meetings and conferences, as requested by the RA;
- update the Division's contacts' database, by browsing and searching relevant information on the web;
- support the Publications Assistant (PA) when dispatching publications in house and abroad;
- distributing internal correspondence to the members of the Division.
Good working knowledge of the OFFICE package is required.
In addition, they might find time to pursue their own research project under the guidance of one of the resident researchers.
A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
Academic Programmes – Operations Divisions (AOD)
The Academic Operations Division is responsible for delivering the major courses run in the College. The Division comprises:
- the Programmes Branch – responsible for programming, coordination and the daily management of courses and provision of support to Course Members;
- the Faculty – responsible for the direction of all academic activity in the Committees;
- Field Studies Branch – responsible for the preparation and execution of the six x 2 week field studies conducted to NATO and Partner countries each year;
- Linguistic Section – responsible for the provision of language support services.
The intern would support the Division Assistant who works for Director of the Division. Responsibilities would focus on support to the Programmes Branch. The working environment is busy. Routine preparation is required as well as the management of the inevitable issues arising in a dynamic academic environment. There is much interaction with the Faculty and Staff in order to deliver the courses. The curriculum is a very topical, focussing on the current strategic political/military issues concerning the alliance. There is ample opportunity to listen to the high quality external lecturers.
A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
Academic Programmes – Curriculum Planning Branch (CPB)
The Curriculum Planning Branch is responsible for developing and implementing the academic curriculum of the NDC Senior Course and certain other short courses. The work involves determination of educational methods, preparation of academic study materials, selection and hiring of lecturers, running of study modules/short courses, and post-event evaluation. Interns working within the branch will be involved in a range of aspects of the academic and practical preparation of study modules/short courses. Candidates applying for internships within the branch should have a strong academic background in a field such as political theory, international relations or security studies, and be able to demonstrate good organisational skills and an ability to achieve results. A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
The mission of the NDC Public Affairs Office is to support the Commandant and the College communicating accurate information in a timely manner to audiences to improve public awareness and understanding of the role, aims, missions, activities and issues, thereby enhancing organisational credibility. Audiences can be allied, international, regional, local or internal, depending on the issue or activity.
The Public Affairs Office deals with the main protocol events at the NDC, it is also responsible for developing a working relationship with media representatives, official contact with foreign embassies and for keeping internal and external audience informed on issues about the College and NATO.
Candidates applying for internships within the PAO will be required to:
- get and keep in touch with international journalists;
- organize "Media days" meetings with media operators;
- write articles for the NDC's website about main events going on at the College;
- plan, organize, and coordinate protocol for significant events at the College;
- establish and maintain contacts and guests lists for all protocol events;
- attend functions at the College to welcome guests and provide guidance;
- draft telegrams, faxes, e-mails and formal letters in English and occasionally Italian;
- draft/prepare Operational Orders for upcoming events and high level visits;
- organize and maintain PAO's archives.
A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
Library (Library and Knowledge Centre)
The NDC Library and Knowledge Centre combines traditional library activities with modern knowledge-based services in the fields of international relations, security and defence issues, military affairs, and current world affairs. The Intern will participate in the integration of knowledge management activities into NDC divisions and branches and will also perform routine clerical library functions.
Candidates applying for internship within the Library should have a good knowledge of library operations and related work experience and, if possible, a basic background in international relations.
A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
Communications & Information Services Branch (CIS)
Candidates applying for internship within the CIS will be requested to work on a project for the implementation of new intranet services. The NDC intranet is based on Microsoft SharePoint Office Server 2007 therefore knowledge of MOSS 2007 and familiarity with ASP.NET is required.
The candidate may also be assigned an entire portion of a project to constitute the basis for a thesis or diploma work. The candidate will also work in close relation with the contractors currently supporting the implementation of the NDC Intranet.
A very good level of English language proficiency is required. Knowledge of French and/or Italian would also be of benefit but is not essential.
Remuneration: Interns will receive a lump sum of 600 EUR per month. The payment is not exempt from taxation by the candidate's original country.
Insurance: Interns must have health insurance cover, and will be required to sign a certificate confirming such cover.
Leave: Interns will keep the same hours of work and have the same official public holidays as other NDC staff members. After three months of service interns shall be entitled to leave (including sick leave) at the rate of 2.5 days for every month of service completed. Any accumulated untaken leave will not be paid. In case of sickness, interns must notify Human Resources immediately.
Certification: At the end of the internship, the Hosting Branch will provide the intern with certification, which will include an evaluation of his/her work.
Eligibility Criteria
Current students and recent graduates (1 year) with:
- Age : over 21 at the time of internship.
- Nationality : nationals of a NATO member state.
- Studies : at least two years of university study.
- Languages : proficiency in one of the official NATO languages ( English/ French); desirable working knowledge of the other.
All interns will require a security clearance from their national authorities prior to working at NATO. The procedure will be initiated as soon as the candidate has been selected.
Interns are required to comply with the necessary formalities with the Italian authorities regarding their stay in Italy.
HOW TO APPLY
PLEASE FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS VERY CAREFULLY
Applicants must send:
- Application form (Available here when the calling period is open).
- Curriculum Vitae
- one-page motivational essay
These documents must be compressed in one single “.ZIP” file (file such as .rar or .7z will be rejected) named with the applicant's surname only (e.g. Smith.zip).
Applications received after the deadline will not be taken into consideration and will receive no reply.
