The York International Internship Program (YIIP) is a unique program that enables students to gain international and cross-cultural work experience through internship placements in Canada and abroad in regions such as Latin America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
Right: York International intern Eli Kimmerling
These internships, which run for three months in the summer of 2005, are open to senior students from various disciplinary backgrounds. Through an open competition, students will be selected and offered placements. Each placement carries a $3,000 York International Internship Award. Students placed overseas are also eligible to apply for the York International Mobility Award (YIMA).
“This internship program represents a significant financial investment from the University and shows further evidence of our commitment to internationalization,” says Adrian Shubert, professor of history and associate vice-president international. “In the first year we had 25 placements available; this year there will be between 35 and 40.”
The internship placements, many of which have been arranged through the cooperative efforts of York faculty members, include placements in countries as diverse as Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, and Peru. Opportunities exist for undergraduate and graduate students in a variety of fields including art history and fine arts, education, engineering, history, international development studies, international studies, anthropology, computer science and social science. Several placements will require students to have foreign language proficiency.
The experiences of some of last year’s internship participants were presented at the recent York Symposium on Experiential Education and Internationalization Symposium (as well as in the Aug. 19 issue of YFile).
Students must apply by Dec. 17 to be considered for this year’s internships. Applications and information are available on the York International Internship Program Web site.