Communications Internship Fall 2025

ISW Internship Program Overview

ISW is offering remote hybrid and inperson internships for Fall 2025. Instructions to apply for the scholarship are below.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) is committed to training the next generation of national security leaders through its innovative educational programs. ISW seeks motivated and experienced college students or recent graduates to join our intern team. ISW offers internships across diverse research portfolios and departments including Russia China and Irans proxy networks. ISW also offers internships in Geospatial Intelligence and Technologies National Security and lntelligence Analysis and our Cognitive Warfare Task Force.

Why Work for ISW

ISW believes that ground realities must drive the formulation of strategy and policy. In pursuit of this principle ISW conducts detailed opensource intelligence analysis to provide timely and accurate information on current conflicts and security threats directly to policymakers and warfighters.

Interns at ISW have an unparalleled opportunity to analyze conflicts in ways that directly inform policymakers on some of the most pressing issues facing American national security. Our interns work directly with analysts. They receive classroom education regular leadership engagement and a chance to work with cuttingedge technologies employed in business and the intelligence community. Interns have the opportunity to stand at the front lines of military research and policy development tackling the latest crises in the headlines.

The ISW Internship Program is one of three core education programs housed within The General David H. Petraeus Center for Emerging Leaders launched to identify educate and develop the future cadre of leaders committed to Americas national security. ISW views interns as an integral component of its team. ISW has worked with interns to draft edit and publish their own research under the mentorship of senior analysts. It has also hired many interns onto its staff.

Communications Internship: ISWs Communications Team offers a unique opportunity to candidates interested in learning more about nonprofit communications with an eye towards national security. Interns will hone their skills supporting a variety of communications functions including media relations and monitoring writing and copyediting social media monitoring and management digital content creation and media and policy research.

Over the course of a quarter interns will receive guidance from ISWs professional communications and publishing staff gradually expanding their knowledge of communications strategy and sharpening their ability to improve written products. Interns will have the opportunity to create and edit videos graphics and written material as well as assist in special projects and company initiatives. Interns will also help develop and execute social media campaigns across platforms like X Facebook LinkedIn and Instagram.

This internship provides a great opportunity to train alongside a small and flexible external relations team in an engaging and fastpaced work environment. This is a fulltime (five days per week) inperson remote or hybrid internship; but parttime work will be considered on a casebycase basis.

To apply please submit a resume and cover letter. Competitive applicants are strongly encouraged to also submit one or two graphic design samples.

Qualifications

• Candidates must be motivated and organized college students or recent graduates with demonstrated proficiency in a related field.
• Candidates must possess excellent writing editing and oral communication skills.
• Candidates should have experience adhering to a codified writing style guide such as the AP Stylebook the Chicago Manual of Style or the American Psychological Association Stylebook.
• Candidates should have experience reviewing the written work of others; this can include peer reviews of papers work in a college writing center or other copyediting experience in a professional or academic setting.
• Candidates should be selfmotivated creative and capable of working in a dynamic and fastpaced environment.

Fall 2025 Internship Program Dates: ISW internships start September 9 2025. The program will run until December 12. Interns must both be authorized to work in the United States and be physically present in the United States during their internship tenure. Working remotely outside of the United States is not authorized. If you attend a US university on a student visa you must be eligible for and obtain a CPT authorization before beginning at ISW. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until July 25 2025.

Instructions:Please upload your resume cover letter and writing/editing sample. If submitting an editing sample make sure the sample demonstrates the effect of your edits in some manner. Embedded tracked changes work for this purpose as do screenshots of your communications with the writer. You may include fullpage screen captures or scans of edited content but make sure the resolution is high enough for the image to be readable. You may also include a short synopsis explaining how your edits improved the document. Your cover letter and work sample should be no longer than five pages combined; the work sample can be excerpted from a longer paper.

ISW will work with students to gain academic credit for internships where applicable.

ISW Scholarship Application

The Institute for the Study of War will offer intern candidates up to a $1000 monthly living stipend as part of a scholarship program.* To be considered for the scholarship candidates must upload a scholarship application as part of their internship application. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until July 25 2025.

Candidates will be assessed based on the following criteria:

1. Ability to contribute as a member of one of ISWs research operations business development or external relations teams; and
2. Financial need such that an unpaid internship would not be possible without assistance.

To be considered for the scholarship candidates must upload a scholarship application as part of their internship application.

Within the scholarship application candidates should upload a 2 to 3page cover letter which answers each of the following questions. (This should be a different cover letter than the one used for the internship application itself.

1. Which ISW internship is your top choice Why do you believe you are qualified
2. What do you believe to be the most pressing national security problem the US faces today What solution(s) would you propose
3. Where do you see yourself in your future career How will an ISW internship help you get there
4. Why have you chosen to apply for this supplemental scholarship
5. Are you currently receiving federal financial aid and/or needbased aid from your university Feel free to describe using as much detail as you are comfortable.

*Please note that the up to $1000 monthly scholarship is classified as taxable income.

Required Experience:

Intern