Internships in the EU
Are you interested in gaining an insight into the work of the European Union and do you want to use your academic skills in practice? Then an internship in one of the EU-institutions might be something for you. There are numerous opportunities to get an internship within the EU. This page helps you in finding the relevant information and links.
Internship in the EU-institutions
Most of the EU-institutions offer internships (also called a ‘stagiaire') twice a year. The different institutions have different applications requirements but it is in general expected that you as a minimum have obtained a bachelor degree and have a good knowledge of two of the official EU languages. In addition, the internship can both be paid or unpaid, but usually you will receive a monthly allowance. You should be aware that the application deadline for an internship with one of the EU-institutions often take place rather early. It is therefore important that you apply well in advance and meet all the formal requirements. As an intern you will be assigned one or more advisers and carry out tasks similar to those holding a starting position within the EU-institutions. Below you will find the relevant links for some of the more traditional internships in the EU:
The European Commission
The European Parliament
The Council (The General Secretariat)
The EU Court of Justice
Beside the ‘more' traditional European Institutions, you also have the opportunity to do an internship at one of the other EU-institutions:
The European Court of Auditors
The European Ombudsmand
The European Central Bank
The European Economic and Social Committee
Committee of the Regions
Finally, it is possible to do an internship at one of the EU's agencies.
Here you can search for EU's different agencies and their location
Internship at the EU delegations
The EU has a total of 130 delegations around the world. A number of these delegations also offer internships, so if you are interested in gaining a better insight of how the work of the European External Action Service (EEAS) unfolds and wish to get a deeper understanding of the EU's diplomatic relations with the third worlds countries and other international organisations, it is a good idea to have a look at the following links:
Overview of all the EU delegations
Overview of the EU's delegations to international organisations
Overview of the EU's delegations traineeships
On the web pages of the different delegations, you will find more information regarding the possibilities of internships and the formal requirements etc.
Internship at a national Permanent Representation
Some Danish students choose to do an internship at the Danish Permanent Representation in Brussels. Whether your home country offers any internships and which specific requirements they ask for obviously depends on the individual Member States, but here you will find a list of the different Permanent Representation in Brussels
Internship for a MEP in the European Parliament
Besides being part of the European Parliaments' internal staff, you also have the opportunity to do an internship with one of the EU parliamentarians. As an intern you will often act as a political assistant supporting the MEP solving political and journalistic tasks and answer citizen inquiries. However the specific tasks will vary according to the MEP's policy-areas and interests. Usually the internships will be posted online via the MEP's webpage.
EU-institutions career opportunities
Did you know, that the EU-institutions offer a lot of exciting career opportunities? Via the link below you will find more information about EU careers.