Calling All Changemakers: Summer 2025 Internship Opportunity with the Public Policy Lab

Are you a graduate scholar wanting to create significant change? Do you wish to achieve hands-on expertise in public service design whereas collaborating with authorities businesses and communities in New York City? The Public Policy Lab (PPL) invites you to apply for its Summer 2025 Graduate Internship Program—a singular alternative to make an actual difference in individuals’s lives by design, analysis, and innovation.

Applications are open till 5:00 p.m. on May 1, 2025 (EST).

About the Public Policy Lab

The Public Policy Lab is a nonprofit group devoted to bettering the lives of low-income and weak Americans. Through a human-centered design method, PPL works inside public techniques—not outdoors them—to assist redesign providers and insurance policies in collaboration with authorities companions. PPL will not be an advocacy group however a drive for sensible, systemic change. With deep experience in design, social science, and know-how, the group delivers progressive, empathetic options to complicated societal challenges.

Internship Overview

This paid internship runs from early June to mid-August 2025, with interns anticipated to work as much as 32 hours per week, primarily Monday by Thursday, at PPL’s vibrant DUMBO workplace in New York City. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are in-person workdays for the full NYC group, fostering full of life collaboration and group bonding.

Graduate interns are present or current college students who’re obsessed with utilizing their expertise to enhance public providers. They contribute throughout the group, partaking in every thing from venture growth to ethnographic analysis and co-designing prototypes. Interns are embedded in real-world public-sector work—immediately collaborating with authorities businesses and communities to create options which might be each strategic and empathetic.

What You’ll Do

Interns at PPL are by no means on the sidelines. You’ll achieve hands-on expertise by:

Conducting ethnographic analysis and interviews
Co-designing and testing prototypes with group stakeholders
Mapping techniques and creating visible storytelling instruments

Supporting the implementation of latest providers and instruments
Participating in inner communications, occasions, and venture documentation

Past interns have contributed to impactful tasks equivalent to:

Streamlining the housing application course of for unhoused New Yorkers
Enhancing psychological well being service referrals for households

Expanding healthcare entry for communities affected by the digital divide

What PPL Is Looking For

PPL seeks numerous, pushed people with expertise or curiosity in human-centered design, analysis, communications, visible design, or public technique. Ideal candidates will show:

Strong written and verbal communication expertise
Critical pondering and sample recognition
An skill to work each independently and collaboratively

Curiosity about how public providers could be higher designed—with and for individuals

Experience with public sector work, skilled providers, or group engagement is a plus. PPL additionally extremely values candidates who replicate the numerous communities of New York City. Candidates with fluency in a significant non-English NYC language (e.g., Spanish, Mandarin, or ASL), in addition to these from LGBTQIA, immigrant, low-income, justice-system-involved, or housing-insecure backgrounds, are particularly inspired to apply.

What You’ll Gain

The PPL internship affords extra than simply résumé-building expertise:

Social Impact

You’ll be engaged on tasks that have an effect on tens of millions of Americans, making certain your time spent has goal and attain.

Skills Development

Grow your capabilities in design analysis, qualitative strategies, storytelling, group collaboration, and facilitation. Learn apply tutorial information to real-world policymaking.

Mentorship

Collaborate with skilled professionals and obtain steering from PPL workers. You’ll achieve entry to confirmed methodologies for designing and implementing public service enhancements.

Professional Network

Join a vibrant, worldwide community of PPL fellows—professionals working throughout analysis, design, authorities, and coverage sectors.

Compensation

This is a paid internship at a aggressive price of $31/hour. In some circumstances, the engagement might prolong past the summer time based mostly on venture wants and efficiency.

Requirements & Application Details

Interns should be current in New York City. Summer interns are anticipated to work in our DUMBO workplace for as much as 32 hours per week, primarily from Monday by Thursday. All of our New York City workers come to our DUMBO workplace on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Interns should be capable of journey, and driving expertise are a plus!

Required Qualifications

Strong written and verbal communication expertise
Critical pondering and sample recognition expertise

Experience in analysis, enterprise administration/technique, visible design, and/or communications
Experience or curiosity in human-centered design strategies

Additional Hiring Priorities

PPL believes that our work—and all policymaking—might be handiest after we replicate the communities that we serve. With this in thoughts, we encourage individuals to apply who:

have fluency in a significant, non-English New York City language (equivalent to Spanish, Mandarin, or ASL),
come from lower-income, LGBTQIA, immigrant, temporarily-housed, or justice-system-involved backgrounds, and/or
have a US driver’s license.

Deadline to Apply:
May 1, 2025, by 5:00 p.m. EST

Shortlisted candidates might be invited to a short Zoom interview. No telephone calls, please.

What else ought to you recognize?

Work/life steadiness is vital to us. We shut our workplace for a number of weeks every year and customarily prohibit work communications to weekday enterprise hours.

We imagine that good design begins at home: PPL can solely generate significant coverage and repair designs if our group finds which means and satisfaction and progress in our work. We often focus on our values, and we discover methods to be higher for one another and in the world.

We are studying to make our hiring practices extra inclusive and accessible to these coming from numerous skilled or private backgrounds. If you want additional assist or have suggestions on methods to make this application simpler to navigate, please ship an e mail at data@publicpolicylab.org.

Employment Policies

The Public Policy Lab is an Equal Opportunity Employer; all certified candidates will obtain consideration for employment with out regard to race, creed, shade, faith, nationwide origin, ancestry, citizenship standing, age, incapacity, intercourse, sexual orientation, gender id, marital standing, veteran standing, or every other attribute protected by relevant federal, state or native legal guidelines.

We can solely think about candidates already approved to work in the United States. We don’t present relocation bills. Nothing on this job posting or description ought to be construed as a suggestion or assure of employment.

Ready to Apply?

[Fill out application]

To be taught extra, please go to Public Policy Lab or e mail data@publicpolicylab.org with any accessibility questions or suggestions about the application course of.

Make your summer time matter. Join the Public Policy Lab and assist design a greater future for all.

For extra alternatives, please go to our web site Opportunities For Youth.