12 Human Rights Internships for High School Students

Human rights advocacy is a dynamic field dedicated to protecting and promoting individuals' and communities' fundamental rights and freedom. Participating in a human rights internship will not only allow you to contribute to improving your community but also help you explore potential careers and network with experts, fostering professional relationships. Securing an internship during high school is a great way to get hands-on experience in your chosen field, making your profile stand out on college applications.

In addition to working with non-profit organizations and pursuing legal careers focused on human rights law, opportunities are also offered by international bodies such as the United Nations, governmental and intergovernmental agencies, academic institutions, and independent research organizations that provide various paths for those passionate about advancing human rights on local, national, and international levels.

To get you started, here’s our curated list of 12 human rights internships for high school students! 

1. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights High School Internship

Location: Washington, D.C.
Note: The option to work remotely is available, but you may be required to come to the Washington D.C.-based office occasionally or regularly.
Cost/Stipend: No cost or stipend.
Dates: Available year-round. High school internships last at least two weeks and can extend up to two months, requiring a 25-hour minimum weekly commitment.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis (depending on availability).
Eligibility: Graduating high school seniors are eligible to apply. 

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition of over 230 national organizations that promotes and protects the civil and human rights of all persons in the country, offers a substantive and fast-paced internship to graduating high school seniors with a passion for social justice. The program will allow you to increase your knowledge and awareness of civil and human rights issues, enhance your understanding of working in coalition, and observe the legislative process of the federal government. 

The duration of this internship can be a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of two months, requiring you to commit at least 25 hours per week. As an intern, you will be involved in communications, development, operations, field, and policy work, as well as networking. While the internship is unpaid, you can receive community service hours. To apply, you can visit the Career Center and submit your resume and cover letter. 

2. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) National Advocacy Institute

Location: Washington, D.C.
Cost: $2,700 (including lodging, food, experiential learning activities, and social events). Financial aid and scholarships are available. 
Dates: July 21 - 27, 2024.
Application Deadline: Early decision - March 3, 2024 | Regular decision - April 22, 2024 | Rolling applications after April 22, 2024.
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors between the ages of 15 and 18, including graduating seniors.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) hosts a National Advocacy Institute, inviting high school students interested in civil rights and social justice from across the country to participate in a week-long in-person program. The program aims to equip participants with skills in advocacy, community organizing, and policy analysis through classroom sessions, lectures, site visits, and policy discussions. As a participant, you will engage directly with experienced ACLU lawyers, lobbyists, community activists, and other experts as you engage in campaigns to defend civil liberties. 

You don’t need to have previous familiarity with civil liberties issues or advocacy methodologies. To apply, you can fill out the application form! You will also be required to submit a letter of recommendation. If you are interested in applying for financial aid, you must fill out this application form and submit it at the same time as the program application.

3. American Red Cross Youth Volunteer Opportunities

Location: Multiple locations.
Stipend: This is an unpaid volunteering opportunity.
Dates: Year-round opportunities are available.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis depending on the available opportunities.
Eligibility: All high school students are eligible.

As a high school student eager to contribute to community service, volunteering with the American Red Cross presents a profound opportunity to make a real difference in people's lives. The American Red Cross is renowned for its nationwide mobilization of workers and volunteers in a multitude of healthcare-related activities, ranging from blood donation drives and disease management to disaster response efforts. The American Red Cross offers volunteering opportunities to high school students all year round. 

Volunteering with the Red Cross can help you multiply your impact by connecting you with people who share your commitment and passion. As a high school student, you can volunteer when opportunities open up in your community. You can also join or start a Red Cross Club (like the SleevesUp Campaign), where you do service and educational projects to benefit your school and community. You can then join as an intern in college, which will showcase your leadership and progress. To apply, you can find an opportunity near you and fill out this application form!  

4. Generation Human Rights (GenHR) Student Internship 

Location: Varies depending on the opportunity.
Cost/Stipend: No cost or stipend.
Dates: Opportunities are available during the spring, summer, and fall cohorts (2024).
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the type of internship opportunity.
Eligibility: High school students with strong writing and research skills. 

Generation Human Rights (GenHR), a nonprofit organization, offers competitive internship opportunities to students three times a year. As an intern, you will provide programmatic and research support to several ongoing and potential future initiatives of the organization. You will also assist with additional tasks like social media curation, note-taking, and prospect and grant research. The internship focuses on hands-on experience, and you will conduct substantive research, develop multimedia ideas, and contribute your own experiences to projects. 

You will be expected to commit 3-5 hours per week to this internship. You can find the details on the website and apply by emailing a brief cover letter, a resume, and a brief writing sample to elana@generationhumanrights.org. 

Note: Submit the entire application in one attached PDF file and use “GenHR Spring 2024 Internship Application” as the subject of your email.

5. Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Youth Ambassador Program

Location: Remote. 
Stipend: $100 per engagement (such as serving on a panel, providing a keynote, drafting a blog post, or participating in a video).
Dates: 2024-25 cohort dates TBA.
Application Deadline: 2024-25 cohort dates TBA.
Eligibility: High school students between the ages of 13 and 21 who identify as LGBTQ+ and are comfortable publicly sharing their identity, including on social media. 
Note: You must be available and willing to travel to DC (all travel costs will be covered) to participate in the Youth Ambassador Retreat (one weekend).

Human Rights Campaign (HRC) offers the Youth Ambassador Program to LGBTQ+ students as a part of their Youth Well-Being Program. The program provides a leadership opportunity to LGBTQ+ young advocates who are interested in helping raise awareness of HRC’s efforts to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ youth at home, at school, at work, and beyond through storytelling. As a part of this program, you will be trained by HRC staff and professionals to represent the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in your community. 

You will act as a Youth Ambassador and add your voice and experience to raise awareness about the most pressing concerns facing LGBTQ+ youth and our programs that promote well-being for LGBTQ+ youth, including All Children - All Families, Welcoming Schools, and the Youth Well-Being Program. You can check out further details on their website and keep an eye out for the 2024-25 applications, which will be announced soon!

6. California Innocence Project (CIP) Internships 

Location: San Diego, CA (California Western School of Law).
Cost/Stipend: None.
Dates: The program conducts summer, spring, and fall sessions. Interns may set their schedules as long as the requirements are met.
Application Deadline: Summer – March 1 | Fall – July 1 | Spring – November 1.
Eligibility: High school, college, law, and post-bar students are eligible.

This internship is ideal for students interested in criminal law or post-conviction law. The California Innocence Project is a law clinic where you will work alongside experienced post-conviction attorneys to seek the release of wrongfully convicted prisoners in the state of California. Their mission is to free the wrongly convicted from prison, work to reform the criminal justice system, and train law students to become zealous advocates. This internship will give you an idea of the reality of the criminal justice system. 

The California Innocence Project hires a legal intern for their office every trimester, giving them an insight into the field while they work on the clinic’s projects. You would be expected to work 15-35 hours per week as an intern. The CIP provides in-house training for its interns. If selected, you will be briefed and receive an introduction to wrongful convictions, along with the specific responsibilities and work you will have to do as a part of their greater mission. As a legal intern, you will be required to help with legal research, copying, filing, client support, and/or whatever else CIP specifies. You can access the application here.

7. Human Rights Education Institute (HREI) Volunteer Opportunities

Location: Coeur d’Alene, ID.
Cost/Stipend: No cost or stipend.
Dates: Vary depending on the opportunity.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.Eligibility: All high school students are eligible to apply.

HREI provides volunteering opportunities to high school students to help promote their mission of teaching human rights, diversity, equality, and respect for all. Volunteer opportunities include offering a tour of the facility and its exhibits, assisting in planning and volunteering for fundraisers, helping with the day-to-day administrative duties in the office, such as answering phones, writing letters and thank-you notes, filing, and copying, helping manage and organize resources in the HREI Resource Library, helping catalog and organize artifacts of cultural and/or historical significance, and helping keep the exhibit rooms, offices, restrooms and immediate outside areas clean and tidy for visitors and staff.

You’ll also get to assist in the development and management of meaningful programs and supportive services and help deliver the programs, events, and activities that make the community a stronger place. You can contact the volunteer coordinator by filling out this form.

8. The ACS Youth Leadership Council (YLC) 

Location: New York City, NY.
Stipend: No stipend. It is an unpaid volunteering opportunity. 
Dates: Year-round opportunities are available.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Eligibility: Students aged between 16-24 years are eligible to apply.

As a high school student keen on community service and advocacy, volunteering with the ACS Youth Leadership Council (YLC) offers an empowering platform to make a significant difference in the lives of youth involved with the child welfare and juvenile justice system in NYC. The YLC is not just another volunteer opportunity; it's a chance for you to be part of a group that actively participates in planning, policy development, and decision-making processes that directly impact your peers and community. 

By joining the YLC, you're recognized as an expert in addressing the needs of young people and measuring the impact of child-serving systems. The YLC tackles a wide range of issues including permanency, housing, finances, employment, education, and social justice. Members meet once a month, receiving ongoing support and coaching from ACS Youth Engagement Staff and regular check-ins from ACS leadership. Through team-building exercises, workshops, and on-the-job training, you gain access to tools that aid in your personal and professional development. The YLC is actively involved in policy reform, creating a dedicated webpage, and ensuring youth stay connected, especially during uncertain times. You can find the application form here.

9. The Carter Center’s Human Rights Program

Location: Atlanta, GA.
Stipend: This is an unpaid volunteering opportunity. 
Dates: Vary depending on the opportunity but typically available during the summer.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Eligibility: Students must be at least 16 years old to volunteer; if they are under 18 years old, they need to submit a consent form signed by their parent or guardian.

The Human Rights Program aims to protect human rights by supporting individuals, organizations, and nations striving to realize the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights and responsibilities enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and a growing body of public international law. The Carter Center pursues these objectives through many programmatic initiatives, including racial justice, women’s rights, supporting human rights defenders globally, and in-country focus in places such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Israel-Palestine.

Student volunteers are assigned a specific day and given a morning or afternoon work period. You may be assigned to a particular project or float between various projects and departments. High school students are limited to administrative volunteering during the summer when they are not in school.

10. Hands On Hartford Volunteers

Location: Hartford, CT.
Stipend: No stipend. It is an unpaid volunteering opportunity. 
Dates: Available year-round (depending on the available opportunities).
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Eligibility: Students who are at least 16 years old and have parental permission.

Hands On Hartford is a social service nonprofit organization that serves Hartford’s most economically challenged residents in the areas of food, housing, and health. They have several active service projects and offer student volunteering opportunities. As a volunteer, you can give back to your community and make a tangible impact.  

All approved volunteers must attend a 1-hour volunteer orientation before volunteering in our programs. With the exception of special events, the volunteering opportunities fall on Mondays through Thursdays from 8:30 am-5:00 pm. The number of available volunteer opportunities fluctuates throughout the year, and you may be placed on our volunteer waitlist. You can check out the available volunteer opportunities and fill out this volunteer application

11. 826 Boston Internships

Location: Roxbury, MA.
Stipend: Paid but depends on the opportunity.
Dates: Fall 2024 (Exact dates TBA).
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the opportunity. 
Eligibility: Students passionate about making a difference who are willing to work in person at the Boston office. 

826 Boston, named as one of the best places to volunteer by The Boston Globe, offers internship positions in the fall, spring, and summer semesters. As an intern, you will get the opportunity to design, write, or teach in a professional environment. You will also gain experience in creative arts education and learn about the day-to-day operations of a small non-profit. 

You can also apply to 826 Boston’s Youth Literary Advisory Board (YLAB) which represents students from across Boston and aims to provide a safe place for teens to express themselves. YLAB members apply, are selected in the fall, and receive paid stipends for their work during the school year as artist-leaders and peer editors. The students meet weekly, and their work culminates every year in a final project. Past projects have included a podcast and a professionally printed book. This will help you build job skills, advance your resume, and acquire excellent references. You will work with other interns, staff, service members, and a large group of volunteers. You can keep an eye out for the Fall 2024 opportunities that will be posted in June on their website!

12. Missing Maps Volunteers

Location: Virtual.
Stipend: No stipend. It is an unpaid volunteering opportunity. 
Dates: Year-round opportunities are available.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Eligibility: Students with access to the internet and the spirit to make an impact in society.

Missing Maps is a volunteer-driven collaborative project that creates maps for unmapped communities of the world that are likely to suffer from disasters and crises. As a volunteer, you will get to trace satellite imagery, add neighborhoods and street names, and more to help humanitarian teams and first responders reach these communities. 

Humanitarian teams use mapped information to plan risk reduction and disaster response activities that save lives. You can also organize or join a ‘mapathon’ where you’ll get to learn from the experiences of others while contributing to a shared goal. Mapathons are organized by groups and individuals all over the world. Even if you don’t know how to map, you can visit their Learn to Map page for beginners and learn in just an afternoon! To apply, just sign up on their website and get started. 

Looking for an immersive internship experience?
Check out Ladder Internships!

Ladder Internships is a selective, virtual internship program where students work with startups and nonprofits from around the world! The startups range across a variety of industries. As part of their internship, each student will work on a real-world project that is of genuine need to the startup they are working with, and present their work at the end of their internship. In addition to working closely with their manager from the startup, each intern will also work with a Ladder Coach throughout their internship. Apply now!

Stephen is one of the founders of Ladder Internships and a Harvard College graduate.

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