International Professional Exchanges Internship

Global Minnesota serves as the Minnesota coordinator for the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program, International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), which brings about 400 visitors to Minnesota each year. Global Minnesota’s role is to identify and arrange meetings with the most important local resources in their field of interest. The International Professional Exchanges Intern assists at every stage of this process, from the initial proposal to the final itinerary.

The Professional Exchanges Intern assists at every stage of this process, from the initial proposal to the final itinerary. See the full internship description here.

Applications for the Fall internship are now closed. Please check back for Spring 2025 internships soon.

Program features include:

Hands-on experience working for a World Affairs Council nonprofit organization
Two assigned supervisors who will provide training and guidance
Opportunity to join Global Minnesota staff meetings to gain deeper understanding of our operations
Free admittance to selected public programs
Complimentary Global Minnesota membership
Networking opportunities
Gain both clerical and program-specific skills
Optional stipend of $500

What the internship will look like:

Support Local Resource Meetings and Reporting:

Research local topics and prepare proposals and/or case studies
Research and identify potential resources
Reach out to request donated meeting space
Confirm local meetings through Google Calendar
Prepare detailed final ground itineraries, confirmation messages and thank you communications
Set up program templates like Program Book and Trello Project lists
Enter data from the meetings into our permanent CRM for the purposes of reporting

Support International Visitor Experience:

Support creation of final itemized agendas for visitors
Collect local resources’ biographies for final agenda
Review Welcome Book for visitors and make suggestions
Assemble and distribute Welcome Bags at hotel
Communicate updates/changes with hotel and ground transportation
Provide media and communications support in the form of obtaining group photos, short stories and social media posts documenting international visitors’ trip
Follow up with the visitors to gain their survey responses
If schedule allows, meet with the visitors, ensuring they have access to loaned cold weather gear
If schedule allows, attend city orientation and join local visits

What you bring to Global Minnesota:

Must be pursuing an Associate’s, Bachelor’s, or Master’s degree, or have recently graduated
Nonprofit Management, Global Studies, International Relations, Public Policy, Peace Studies, and Political Sciences or Area Studies majors preferred but not required
Strong interest in working on detailed projects that require a commitment to accuracy
Previous office and project experience and strong communication skills strongly preferred
Previous work and/or volunteering experience ideal
Experience with Raiser’s Edge database software or another CRM a plus

Skills & mindset:

Dependable, globally-minded students with an interest in learning and the ability to write well, pay attention to details, commit to deadlines, be part of a team, and respond to feedback would be a great fit for this opportunity.

Timeline of program:

Start date: first or second week of September
Expected completion: first or second week of December

Reports to: Professional Exchanges Manager and International Exchanges Coordinator.

Important considerations:

Able to work in-person at the Global Minnesota office 6 to 8 hours a week and up to 2 to 4 hours remotely
Access to equipment and shared-drive will be provided in-office only
This is an unpaid internship with an optional $500 stipend available to those who successfully complete 12-14 weeks at about 10/hours week
The internship involves engagement with important daily tasks and is not set up to lead or own independent end-to-end projects