Advocacy & Survivor Leadership Intern - Summer 2026

Who We Are

International Justice Mission (IJM) is the global leader in protecting vulnerable people from violence around the world. Our team of over 1,200 professionals are at work worldwide in over 30 offices. Together we are on a mission to rescue millions, protect half a billion, and make justice unstoppable.

We are a global community that cares for one another. We believe that the way we work is as important as the results we achieve. We provide professional excellence with joy and celebration to all those we serve.

The Need

For over 25 years, IJM has pioneered the work to protect vulnerable people from violence. 9 out of 9 times in the last decade, IJM’s Justice System Strengthening Projects have reduced slavery and violence between 50 and 85% for very large populations of people in poverty. As we grow to expand our impact to protect 500 million people from violence, we are seeking an Advocacy & Survivor Leadership Intern to join the 2026 Summer Internship class.

The Advocacy & Survivor Leadership team is leading global efforts to build advocacy capacity at the project level to achieve scale, drive strategy on community engagement to increase reliance on the justice system, and scale the power of the Global Survivor Network.

The Advocacy & Survivor Leadership Intern will support a variety of project management tasks for global initiatives. Tasks may include:

• Managing meeting execution and follow-up;
• Supporting global advocacy projects;
• Creating and updating external and internal survivor leadership content;
• Improvement of processes; and
• Participating in departmental and general IJM administrative support.
  
  

This position can be fully in-person or hybrid (onsite Tuesdays & Thursdays) in the Washington, DC area. It reports to the Sr. Lead, Global Survivor Network. The position requires 25-40 hours per week, primarily during the hours of 8:30am-5:30pm EST.

Summer internship program dates are June 1 – Aug. 7, 2026.

Application Deadline: Dec. 31, 2025. Candidate communication will begin in early January.

General Qualifications And Required Skills

• Bachelor's degree must be in progress for DC/Remote Internships and applicants need to have completed at least two years of undergraduate study.
• Experience in project management or process implementation.
• Interest in survivor leadership and global advocacy initiatives.
• Awareness of cross-cultural contexts and communications.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  
  

Critical Qualities

• Mature orthodox Christian faith;
• Humble and resilient;
• Pursues excellence;
• Culturally aware and appreciative of difference;
• Strong service ethic;
• Innovative problem solver;
• Ability to build trust and strong partnerships with others;
• Courageous in pursuing opportunities and challenges;
• Tenacious in achieving goals; and
• Professional.
  
  

Application Process:

Upload Resume, Cover Letter & Statement of Faith* in one PDF document.

• What is a statement of faith? A statement of faith should describe your Christian faith and how you see it as relevant to your involvement with IJM. The statement can either be incorporated into the cover letter or submitted as a separate document and should include, at a minimum, a description of your spiritual disciplines (prayer, study, etc.) and your current fellowship or place of worship.
  
  

IJM holds strict safeguarding principles and a zero tolerance to violations of the Safeguarding Policy, Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment Policy, and Code of Ethics. Candidate selection is based on technical competence, recruitment, selection and hiring criteria subject to assessing the candidate’s value congruence and thorough background, police clearance, and reference check processes.

At IJM, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce through fair and equitable employment practices. IJM encourages people of any race, color, age, sex, marital status or political ideology to apply for employment. While we welcome everyone into this work, we truly believe that the work we are doing is God’s work, not our own, and practice spiritual disciplines together daily. That’s why we legally require under SEC. 2000e-1 [Section702] of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that all employees practice a mature orthodox Christian faith, as defined by the Apostles’ Creed.

IJM requires a background check, police clearance and thorough review of references with an employment offer and/or employment contract.