Internships

We offer semester-term and summer-term internships and externships for undergraduate, graduate and law students, as well as particular opportunities, such as the Public Policy Advocacy Clinic, for NYU School of Law students. Law students are sometimes able to earn credit for their work, may be able to develop law review pieces and other papers on subjects growing out of the Center's activities, and are encouraged to apply for post-graduate fellowships at the Center.

All of our current opportunities are listed here and updated regularly. Please check this site frequently for updates.

Current Opportunities

Development Internship for Undergraduates
Communications Internship for Undergraduates
Summer 2009 Legal Internship Program
Externships and Internships for Law Students
Public Policy and Advocacy Clinic at NYU School of Law

Development Internship for Undergraduates

The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a non-partisan public policy and law institute that focuses on the fundamental issues of democracy and justice. Our work ranges from voting rights to redistricting reform, from access to the courts to presidential power in the fight against terrorism. A singular institution – part think tank, part public interest law firm, part advocacy group – the Brennan Center combines scholarship, legislative and legal advocacy, and communications to win meaningful, measurable change in the public sector.

We are seeking one part-time intern to provide administrative and clerical support to staff in our Development Department.

The Center currently has an $8 million budget and a portfolio of over $11,000,000 in grants from private and institutional donors. The Development Department is responsible for raising these funds and planning the growth of the organization.

Responsibilities: All interns assist with general administrative and clerical work for the Brennan Center, including filing, photocopying, answering phones, shipping and mailing, coordinating meetings, drafting routine correspondence and covering the reception desk.

In addition to general clerical tasks, the Development Intern will be:

Assisting in event organization;
Updating the fundraising database;
Researching funding opportunities; and
Assisting in donor correspondence.

The job is great experience for undergraduates interested in the general workings of a fundraising department at a not-for-profit organization.

Qualifications: The ideal candidates are independent, detail-oriented, self-starters, energetic, and highly organized. Experience with Windows XP, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word, a must. Database experience very helpful. Must be open to evolving responsibilities.

Hours and Duration: 15-25 hours per week from January-May 2009.

Pay: $11.00 per hour.

To Apply: Send resume and cover letter to via e-mail to: with “Development Internship” in the subject line. No phone calls, please. This internship is only open to current undergraduate students.

Deadline: December 31, 2008.

The Brennan Center for Justice is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, which welcomes qualified applicants of all races, ethnicities, physical and mental abilities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

Communications Internship for Undergraduates

The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a non-partisan public policy and law institute that focuses on the fundamental issues of democracy and justice. Our work ranges from voting rights to redistricting reform, from access to the courts to presidential power in the fight against terrorism. A singular institution – part think tank, part public interest law firm, part advocacy group – the Brennan Center combines scholarship, legislative and legal advocacy, and communications to win meaningful, measurable change in the public sector.

We are seeking 1-2 part-time interns to provide administrative and clerical support to staff in our Communications & Strategy Department.

Responsibilities: All interns assist with general administrative and clerical work for the Brennan Center, including filing, photocopying, answering phones, shipping and mailing, coordinating meetings, drafting routine correspondence and covering the reception desk.

In addition to general clerical tasks, the Communications Intern will be:

Filing press clips and tracking media appearances;
Updating press lists;
Helping to research and edit opinion pieces and blog entries;
Drafting press releases, cover letters and other external communications;
Tracking BC issues and initiatives on the web;
Assisting in outreach; and
Updating web site.

The job is great experience for undergraduates interested in the general workings of a communications department at a not-for-profit organization.

Qualifications: The ideal candidates are independent, detail-oriented, self-starters, energetic, and highly organized. Experience with Windows XP, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word, a must. Database experience very helpful. Must be open to evolving responsibilities.

Hours and Duration: 15-25 hours per week from January-May 2009.

Pay: $11.00 per hour.

To Apply: Send resume and cover letter to via e-mail to: with “Communications Internship” in the subject line. No phone calls, please. This internship is only open to current undergraduate students.

Deadline: December 31, 2008.

The Brennan Center for Justice is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, which welcomes qualified applicants of all races, ethnicities, physical and mental abilities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

Summer 2009 Legal Internship Program

The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law invites motivated and capable law students to apply for its summer legal internship program. We are hiring interns for both our New York and Washington offices. Please read the following description carefully and follow the application instructions below. If you have questions, e-mail us at .

About the Brennan Center

The Brennan Center for Justice is a non-partisan public policy and law institute that focuses on the fundamental issues of democracy and justice. Our work ranges from voting rights to redistricting reform, from access to the courts to presidential power in the fight against terrorism. A singular institution – part think tank, part public interest law firm, part advocacy group – the Brennan Center combines scholarship, legislative and legal advocacy, and communications to win meaningful, measurable change in the public sector.

Please visit our website at http://www.brennancenter.org for additional information on the Center’s current activities and staff.

The Center’s Program Areas

Democracy Program

The Democracy Program seeks to bring the ideal of representative self-government closer to reality. The Program collaborates with grassroots groups, advocacy organizations, and reform-minded government officials to eliminate barriers to full and equal political participation and to promote institutions that meaningfully reflect diverse interests and views. Summer interns will assist attorneys with scholarship, public education, legislative counseling, and advocacy, with an emphasis on legal research and writing. Assignments will be drawn from the following projects of the Democracy Program:

The Campaign Finance Reform Project works to combat the unfair influence of money on our electoral and legislative processes at the local, state, and federal level. Through counseling, bill drafting assistance, and legislative testimony, we assist advocates and lawmakers in drafting constitutional campaign finance laws. We help states to defend good campaign finance laws that are challenged in federal and state courts, including in current cases attacking public financing systems in Arizona, Connecticut, and North Carolina.
The Voting Rights & Elections Project uses policy analysis, public education, and legal advocacy to promote fair representation of disempowered constituencies and to eliminate unnecessary burdens on voting. We combat barriers to registration and voting, including restrictions on voter registration drives, onerous ID requirements, flawed purge policies, and other practices likely to suppress the vote and have a disproportionate impact on communities of color. We also promote affirmative policies that expand the franchise (such as Election Day registration) and make our voting machines more secure, accessible, and user-friendly.
The Right to Vote Campaign Project works to restore voting rights to people with felony convictions. We provide legal analysis and legislative counseling to advocates and policymakers across the country; conduct research and regulatory advocacy to document noncompliance with current law and to ensure that all eligible voters able to register and vote; inform the debate on rights restoration through public education and outreach; and support litigation against felony disfranchisement policies and practices.
The Fair Courts Project seeks to protect the independence, impartiality, and integrity of the courts so that they can defend the rights of unpopular and vulnerable populations and uphold other core public values. Our core projects focus on improving diversity on the bench, eliminating the undue influence of money on judicial elections, and strengthening recusal policies for successful judicial candidates whose fundraising or other campaign conduct has compromised public confidence in their neutrality.
The Government Accountability Project promotes accountability, transparency, and ethics of government at all levels. We are working to improve the redistricting process by developing a Citizens’ Guide to redistricting and a policy proposal for an independent districting commission that protects the right to full and fair representation and by counseling policy makers and advocates in the states on their options for reform. We also support reform of the New York State legislative process through publication of original studies and the operation of a blog focused on the State.

Justice Program

The Justice Program seeks to bring the ideal of a just society closer to reality. The Program collaborates with grassroots groups, advocacy organizations, and reform-minded government officials to promote equal treatment in our courts, to improve the quality of jobs, and to protect civil liberties in the wake of the war on terror. Summer interns will assist attorneys with scholarship, public education, legislative counseling, and advocacy, with an emphasis on legal research and writing. Each intern will work within a specific project of the Justice Program:

The Access to Justice Project fights to make the judicial system fair despite disparities of wealth and power. Current projects include: i) challenging “user fees” that indigent defendants must pay to secure “free” public defenders, ii) promoting a “civil right to counsel” for tenants facing eviction, parents facing the loss of a child, and immigrants facing deportation, iii) strengthening interpretation and translation services for non-English speakers in state courts, iv) challenging federal laws that block low income people from obtaining full civil legal representation, and similar laws that block public health organizations from working with certain communities affected by HIV/AIDS, and v) supporting public defenders with training to strengthen their communities, including by addressing race bias in the justice system.
The Liberty and National Security Project protects liberty and security by promoting responsible reactions to terror that accord with our nation’s deepest values. It works to advance a better public understanding of the need for accountability, transparency, and checks-and-balances in national-security policy. Current activities include representing and advising counsel for detainees in counter-terrorism operations inside and outside the U.S, including ongoing habeas litigation for three individuals detained without due process in the United States and Iraq, respectively. The project also relies on public advocacy and legislative counseling to promote the Separation of Powers, emphasizing Congress’s role in the democracy and the value of accountability mechanisms, such as disclosure laws and judicial review.

Application Process

The Brennan Center seeks approximately ten law student interns to help with its work during the summer of 2009. Students are asked to apply to the Democracy Program and/or Justice Program. You may send one application and state within the cover letter your program area(s) of interest. Students applying to the Justice Program are encouraged to identify the particular project in which they are most interested.

The application deadline is February 15, 2009. However, applications will be considered on a rolling basis until all positions are filled. Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply early.

Interested candidates should submit a cover letter, resume, law school transcript, one or more legal writing samples, and the names and telephone numbers of three references. Please send applications by e-mail only to with 2009 Summer Legal Internship Program in the subject line. No telephone inquiries please.

The Brennan Center is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, which welcomes qualified applicants of all races, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

Externships and Internships for Law Students

The Brennan Center for Justice brings impact litigation, advises lawmakers on the constitutionality of bills, drafts legislation and regulations, and produces public education materials on a number of topics. We have two programs: Democracy and Justice. Under the Democracy Program, we work on election administration, voting technology, voter registration, expanding the franchise, redistricting, campaign finance reform and judicial selection, among other topics. Under the Justice Program, we work on habeas corpus, abuse of executive power, access to counsel, and the rights of prisoners and ex-prisoners, among other topics.

Position: Each Fall and Spring semester, the Brennan Center hosts 2-3 legal externs to work full time (40 hours a week), and 2-3 legal interns to work part time (15 hours a week), on cutting edge legal issues, including national security issues raised by the Patriot Act, expanding voter registration, strengthening state campaign finance laws, and improving access to the courts. We encourage law students to apply to the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law's Externship and Internship Programs.

Students are not compensated by the Brennan Center for their externships and internships. They do receive one-on-one supervision of their legal work by lawyers on our staff. If students need to complete a particular type of writing assignment for their coursework requirements, we can and have accommodated such requests by allowing students to write law review style articles about legal questions that arise in our work.

How to Apply: Interested students should send (1) a cover letter explaining which particular program or programs they are interested in joining, (2) a current law school transcript, (3) a legal writing sample, (4) a current resume, and (5) contact information for three references. These items should be sent by e-mail to with Externship Program or Legal Internship Program in the subject line. The deadline for the Fall Semester applications is August 15, 2008. The deadline for the Spring Semester applications is November 15, 2008, however, we accept applications on a rolling basis. We encourage students with a strong interest in joining us to apply early.

The Brennan Center Public Policy Advocacy Clinic

The Public Policy Advocacy Clinic "PPAC" is a year-long fieldwork clinic designed to teach public policy reform strategies in the context of the real world campaigns that form the core of the Brennan Center's work. During 2008-09 the Clinic will be co-taught by NYU Professor Sarah Burns and two lawyers from the Brennan Center, Erika Wood and Laura MacCleery. Recognizing that multi-strategy lawyering is increasingly necessary for dealing with societal inequities, including unjust laws and policies, the Brennan Center for Justice and the Clinical Law Program of New York University School of Law are combining efforts to promote the rigorous study of public policy advocacy. The aim is to understand and master the broad range of strategies and skills relied upon by activists seeking to affect decision-making on matters of public policy.

2007–2008 Public Policy Advocacy Clinic

Front row, left to right: Sara Conrath, Roy Herrera, Keren Wheeler, Michael Margulies.
Center row: Michael Young, Alice Mei Ho, Wendy Weiser, Erika Wood, Tracy Chin, Naseem Kourosh.
Back row: Prof. Sarah E. Burns, Louis Lipner, Mimi Franke, Elizabeth Cate, Alex Guerrero.