Internships at AIER

The Opportunity

AIER’s Internships are unparalleled professional opportunities for undergraduates considering careers in economic research, academia, or the private sector. They provide college students and recent graduates the opportunity to work closely with staff on projects relating to their interests and AIER’s mission, including scholarly research, policy analysis, editorial writing, as well opportunities in other departments.

Our interns have leveraged their experiences to launch careers at organizations like The World Bank, The Institute for Justice, Deloitte, Morgan Stanley, and IBM and many other research institutes and companies across the world. A significant number of our former interns now teach and research at well-respected universities across the country.

Research

At the core of the AIER internship program is a self-developed research project, in which each intern develops their research interest into the foundation of an academic conference presentation and/or journal article, as well as how to communicate their results to the general public.

While building out their project, interns are coached on how to develop research ideas, how to ask and justify interesting and important research questions, select an appropriate methodology, present their findings to scholars and peers, and receive critical feedback.

At the end of their internship, each intern presents their final product to AIER staff and visiting scholars and is advised on how to develop their project further. They leave not only with a research product, but a new understanding what engaging in deep, careful, and detailed analysis of issues relevant to life and liberty of individuals – not just to academic discussion – entails.

Curriculum

A robust reading-and-discussion curriculum is the basis of the AIER internship. Interns are presented with selections of leading academic writing on Public Choice analysis, the history of the Great Enrichment, US Debt and monetary policy, and the importance of property rights, among other topics.

In a series of seminar-style discussions led by AIER researchers, they develop their understanding of the ideas and principles behind the texts, and, build an intellectual toolkit to bring to bear on economic problems in their future professional and/or academic careers.

Workshops

Through a series of workshops, interns learn and practice the essentials of academic and popular writing, various research methods, fundamental and advanced techniques in econometrics, economic analysis through AIER economic indicators and Bloomberg terminal data, blockchain technology and cryptocurrency trading, and more.

The workshops are led by experts from AIER and related organizations and are generally conducted face-to-face, so individualized feedback and mentoring can be prioritized.

Compensation

AIER interns are paid $16.25 per hour.

Accommodations, Meals, and Travel

Housing is provided in the AIER manor or cottages right on campus, close to the beautiful town of Great Barrington. Lunch is provided for AIER staff, fellows, and interns every workday. AIER covers travel costs to and from campus.