Paid Student Intern

At a Glance

• Position Type: Paid Student Intern
• Stipend: $16.50/hour
• Hours/week: 5-15 hours/week
• Location: Remote within three hours of EST (headquarters at NYU in New York City)

Library Futures, a project of the Engelberg Center on Innovation Law & Policy at the New York University School of Law, is looking for paid student interns. The internship program is offered over two, twelve-week semesters in summer and fall with a brief break between semesters.

Who We Are

Library Futures is the vanguard nonprofit organization uncovering and confronting the fundamental policy issues that threaten libraries in the digital age. We believe librarians, policymakers, and community leaders deserve a new approach to digital rights so they can protect, advocate for, and advance a fair digital future for libraries and the communities they serve. Library Futures meets this need with fresh research, visionary policy and advocacy initiatives, and engaging education programs.

‍What You’ll Do

‍Student interns will collaborate with Library Futures and the Engelberg community –- including our Directors, Communications Manager, and contracted staff– to advance projects in advocacy, law, policy, research, and outreach on a variety of topics facing public institutions, libraries, museums, and archives. Some of the issues we work on include copyright, antitrust, mergers, digital ownership, censorship, licensing, and contracts.

The interns’ work involves conducting research and crafting accessible, thoughtful guidelines and/or educational tools for information professionals to better understand technology policy and issues facing public institutions, particularly around collections and access. Some interns may support human subjects research projects and must adhere to university standards for responsible conduct of research. Others may be assigned to outreach and advocacy projects. Applicants are encouraged to review the organization’s current work overview document for a sense of projects to which they could be assigned.

Due to the flexible nature of the position, interns could also produce independent research and/or creative work in the form of videos or podcasts, interactive maps or timelines, infographics, and other media that clearly explain policy issues related to digital libraries, archives, and museums. Visit our blog for examples of previous student projects, such as our digital redlining map project and our “Libraries, You Got Rights!” poster.

Additionally, each student will be paired with a mentor from the Library Futures community (including academics, technology workers, librarians, and lawyers) to receive guidance from and build relationships with information professionals at universities, libraries, and archives. Interns will meet one-on-one with their mentor at a mutually agreed upon schedule and will participate in regular meetings with their project supervisor(s) and their cohort. Travel support for professional development and conference presentations may be provided in some circumstances.

‍How to Apply

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and new interns are accepted as space allows, though cohorts typically begin together each summer. To apply, submit a resume or CV, a brief paragraph explaining interest and availability, and contact information for two professional references.

Apply online

Hiring Updates

Though applications are accepted on a rolling basis, there are no current openings in the 2025 cohort. All applications submitted in 2025 will be reviewed in January 2026 for the cohort beginning in Summer 2026. Candidates are discouraged from contacting Library Futures staff about their application status through LinkedIn; please review our FAQ for additional information about eligibility.