Council on Foreign Relations Internship: A Comprehensive Guide

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) offers internships that provide invaluable experience in the field of foreign policy and international affairs. These internships are highly competitive, attracting thousands of applicants each semester. CFR internships provide opportunities to work alongside dedicated staff in a diverse and inclusive environment. Interns are exposed to leading foreign policy experts and offered professional development training.

What to Expect as a CFR Intern

At CFR, interns do work that matters alongside smart and dedicated staff in a diverse and inclusive environment. An intern’s duties generally consist of research, editing and writing, event coordination, and/or departmental support. Interns participate in CFR’s Intern Professional Development program, which complements their substantive work with a series of skill-based workshops, training, and career advice sessions. The position requires excellent writing skills, attention to detail and the ability to multitask.

Blavatnik Internship Program

The Blavatnik Internship Program at CFR was established through a generous gift from the Blavatnik Family Foundation. The program provides paid internships to more than one hundred interns each year. Blavatnik interns gain new insights into critical foreign policy issues and interact directly with leading experts and practitioners. They are offered professional development training to complement their substantive work with a series of skill-based workshops, trainings, and career advice sessions as a foundation for future work in the field of foreign policy and international affairs, and beyond. By providing a competitive hourly wage to all interns, the goal of the program is to make the Council’s highly competitive internships accessible to a broader range of qualified students from all backgrounds, making way for new talent and increasingly diverse perspectives in the field of international relations.

Blavatnik Family Foundation

The Blavatnik Family Foundation is exclusively self-funded and has contributed more than $1 billion to 250 institutions worldwide over the past decade, fostering scientific innovation, world-class culture, and preparing future leaders. The Foundation prioritizes higher education as well as scientific and medical research and innovation. Its activities are highly concentrated to drive meaningful impact and to promote discoveries at major research institutions that will benefit the whole of society. To that end, the Foundation has made transformational gifts to Harvard, Yale, and Tel Aviv Universities, and established the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University. CFR Member Len Blavatnik is among the world’s most accomplished businessmen and prominent philanthropists. A dual US-UK citizen, Len is the founder and chairman of Access Industries, a privately held company headquartered in New York with investments across a range of sectors, including strategic equity, global media and entertainment, real estate, and biotechnology.

Robina Franklin Williams Internship Program

The Robina Franklin Williams Internship Program, supported by a generous gift from the Robina Foundation, CFR members, and family and friends of Franklin Williams, is named in honor of the late Ambassador Franklin H. Williams. CFR is committed to help make the foreign policy community in the United States more reflective of America as a whole and looks to identify the next generation of diverse foreign policy leaders through its Robina Franklin Williams Internship Program. Robina Franklin Williams interns are recruited year-round on a semester basis for positions in CFR’s New York and Washington, DC, offices. An intern’s duties generally consist of research, editing and writing, event coordination, and/or departmental support. Robina Franklin Williams interns participate in CFR’s Intern Professional Development program, which complements their substantive work with a series of skill-based workshops, training, and career advice sessions.

About Ambassador Franklin H. Williams

Ambassador Franklin H. ambassador to Ghana and was the chairman of the board of trustees of Lincoln University, one of the country’s historically black colleges.

Internship Opportunities

Blavatnik interns are recruited year-round on a semester basis for positions in CFR’s New York and Washington, DC, offices. Available Internships in New York, Washington, DC, and RemoteFall 2026 applications will be posted in June/July 2026. There is one posting for the New York office, one for the Washington, DC office, and one for remote applicants. Applicants should apply to their desired work location and check off on their application each internship that they are interested in being considered for. A full list of available positions is available above.

Eligibility and Requirements

CFR generally considers undergraduate and graduate students with majors in international relations, political science, economics, or a related field for its Blavatnik Internship Program. All applicants should have completed the equivalent of four semesters of college coursework (not including AP classes in high school) by the time they begin an internship. A regional specialization, language skills, and additional requirements may also be needed for some internships. In addition to meeting the intellectual requirements, applicants should have excellent skills in administration, writing, research, and computers, as well as previous office experience.

The Application Process

A complete application consists of a resume and a cover letter.

A Former Intern's Perspective

Interning with the Council on Foreign Relations is a highly sought-after experience. Every semester, the Council receives tens of thousands of applications from hopeful students with an interest in foreign policy. One former intern in the Education department had the opportunity to work on the Model Diplomacy team. The time at the Council was filled with a variety of tasks including photo research, developing pitches for new cases, and lots of editing. The internship provided far greater insight into life working at a prestigious think tank. If you are interested in foreign policy, the Council on Foreign Relations is highly recommended! Aside from the name notoriety inevitably associated with the iconic institution that is over one hundred years old, you’ll get to experience a work environment that genuinely values the questions and insights of interns.

Read also: WSAC Overview

Additional Internship Opportunities

Senate Foreign Relations Committee

An internship in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Office of Chairman James E. Risch offers a variety of opportunities to learn about foreign policy in congress, the legislative and committee process, and the operations of an office on Capitol Hill. Interns are be tasked with helping support office operations and assisting staff in their policy work. Internships take place in-person in our Washington, D.C. office. Internships are full-time: Mon-Fri, 9am-6pm while in session, 9am-5pm during recess.

Democratic Staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

The Democratic Staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee seeks applicants for an internship. Interns will work with staff teams to provide research, track hearings and legislation, draft memos, and take notes at high-level meetings. Successful applicants will have excellent research and writing skills, as well as academic or professional experience in international relations or a similar field. Hill experience and NH ties are both a plus. Undergraduate students, graduate students, and recent graduates are all eligible to apply. Normal work hours are 9am-6pm Eastern Time, Monday-Friday, and applicants must commit to 40 hours per week during those hours. SFRC plans to offer remote and hybrid/in-person internships for the upcoming intern class. However, hybrid/in-person internships are subject to change. A hybrid internship would involve our intern classes coming into the office on a rotational basis each day of the week. Please note that an in-person internship would require you to be located in the Washington, D.C. Please complete the application by 11:59pm Eastern Time on March 6, 2026.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Minority Staff

The House Foreign Affairs Committee Minority Staff offers internships during the Spring, Fall, and Summer sessions. Interns will be responsible for providing staff members with policy and administrative support. Duties may include answering phones, compiling press clips, attending staff briefings, performing legislative and policy research, drafting memoranda and other written materials, and a variety of other tasks. Candidates should be team-oriented, resourceful, upbeat people who have skills beyond research and require little supervision. This internship is open to undergraduates (juniors and seniors), recent graduates, and Masters students.

Legal Internship

The House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats is hiring a Legal Intern for the semester. This will offer a law student the unique opportunity to gain experience with legislation, policy, and Congressional oversight. Candidates should have completed at least one year of law school, have strong legal research abilities and written and oral communication skills, and be self-starters who take initiative. Minorities, women, and LGBTQIA+ persons are strongly encouraged to apply.

American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC)

AFPC has great interest in preparing our interns for future success. Policymakers and statesmen, who have held senior positions in government, are brought in as part of a weekly lecture series to meet with interns and discuss the numerous career paths in foreign policy and the ways to best pursue them. Additionally, AFPC maintains good relations with all of its former interns and has established an extensive network of AFPC alumni. To provide networking opportunities, AFPC hosts annual reunions that allow former interns back into the office to share their experiences with the current interns, and provide them with insights and potential access to future positions in the government and graduate programs. AFPC internships are part-time with the opportunity for flexible hours. Interns are expected to work a minimum of 20 hours per week between 9 AM and 6 PM at the AFPC headquarters. Candidates should have a strong interest in foreign policy and national security. In addition to providing interns with a substantive research experience, AFPC encourages and provides opportunities for interns to author or co-author opinion editorials and policy papers.

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