Youth Initiatives Intern - Social Impact Division

WES Immigrant Youth Internship Program

World Education Services needs fresh and diverse insights to support its mission of advancing global mobility and integration of people into academic and professional settings.

World Education Services (WES) is a non-profit social enterprise dedicated to helping international students, immigrants, and refugees achieve their educational and career goals in the United States and Canada. Through WES Global Talent Bridge, the organization joins with institutional partners, community-based organizations, and policymakers to help immigrants and refugees who hold international credentials fully utilize their talents and education to achieve their academic and professional goals. Through its grantmaking, impact investing, and partnerships, the WES Mariam Assefa Fund seeks to advance economic and social inclusion for immigrants and refugees. For more information about WES, please visit our website at www.WES.org

The WES Immigrant Youth Internship Program:

We are currently accepting applications for our Immigrant Youth Internship Program (June to August 2023). The program supports immigrant youth (i.e., first generation immigrants, second generation immigrants, refugee youth, or international students) with obtaining meaningful work experience and building their professional portfolio. You can read more about the program here.

What We Offer:

• A chance to work with passionate and mission-driven leaders
• Opportunities to put theory from the classroom into practice at work
• Friendly colleagues and lots of networking opportunities
• Training and development opportunities, including access to LinkedIn Learning, customized learning plans, and our Wisdom Chat Series with WES leadership
• Competitive compensation: $24 an hour

This Internship Role:

Description:

WES is recruiting a Youth Initiatives Intern to support our Immigrant Solutions team. As a Youth Initiatives Intern, you will support our team in advancing current initiatives on a range of issues impacting immigrant communities across Canada including first- and second-generation immigrant and refugee youth and international students. Your work will be supervised by the Manager, Youth Initiatives. You can expect to build skills and work experience in research, stakeholder engagement, and program and strategy development, in an organization committed to learning, and incorporating justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) into our practice.

We encourage prospective interns to learn more about WES Canada’s social impact activities, including Global Talent Bridge work with partners, research and policy advocacy, and philanthropy.

Duties included but not limited to:

Working on several projects linked to WES Canada’s policy, program and philanthropic initiatives.

• Conduct or contribute to environmental scans and literature reviews to identify gaps in programs and services related to the needs of immigrant youth.
• Support the coordination of program management activities, resources, and timelines as they pertain to ongoing initiatives.
• Assist in project planning and coordination between internal and external stakeholders.
• Provide administrative support as needed in drafting communications such as emails, PowerPoint decks, infographics, blogposts, and agendas for key stakeholder meetings.

The Ideal Candidate will:

• Have a commitment to advancing the social and economic inclusion of immigrants, refugees and international students and a strong commitment to WES’ mission.
• Have a lived experience and/or solid understanding and/or of issues relating to immigration.
• Be an action-oriented person who is a self-starter and can work independently, as well as in a team.
• Have a deep-rooted intellectual curiosity and openness to diverse ideas and perspectives.
• Thrive in an environment that values transparency, collaboration, and is results focused.
• Build collaborative working relationships with colleagues and external partners.

Requirements:

• Current upper-year student and/or recent graduate from a social science, public policy, international development, business administration, and/or other relevant program.
• Brings lived experience as a first-or second-generation immigrant, refugee youth, or international student.
• Some knowledge/ and or familiarity with one or more of the following is strong asset:
  • Trauma informed approaches and practices;
  • Youth-centered and youth-led programming;
  • Participatory and co-design approaches to program development;
  • Equitable partnership building; and
  • Theories of collective impact and how these link to program design/evaluation.
• Foundational knowledge/ and or familiarity with the Canadian settlement service landscape and/ or opportunities to support youth is an asset.
• Strong ability to communicate in English (written/verbal) including in a remote work setting making use of digital collaboration and communication tools.

Working Conditions:

The intern will work remotely alongside WES staff (located across Canada and the U.S.) who are also working remotely. This internship is open to candidates from British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario, or Nova Scotia. Interns who are based near our Toronto Office can enjoy the flexibility of working in the office or at home. WES’ Toronto office has a shared, open office environment with break-out and meeting rooms and light to moderate noise. Adherence to public health and safety Covid protocols are required to work from the WES office.

Hours: Full-time, 35 hours a week with flexible working options

Duration: 12 weeks, June to August (tentative program start: June 5)

Rate of Pay: $24 / hr

Equipment: Laptop will be provided for the duration of the internship

Application Process:

Please apply directly to the link provided on our website.

Applications will be accepted until March 10, 2023

Please submit a resume and a cover letter (maximum 1 page) in MS Word or PDF format. The file should be named as follows: Youth Initiatives Intern_Last Name, First name

DEI Statement:

WES values diversity in all its forms and recruits qualified individuals at all occupational levels that reflect the diversity of our clients and our community. We strive to foster a workplace in which all individuals maximize their potential, regardless of their differences. We are committed to providing accommodation for persons with disabilities. If you require accommodation to complete this application, we will work with you to meet your needs. Please contact Human Resources at weshr@wes.org. Accommodation may be provided at all stages of the hiring process.