About Journalism Internships at the Student Press Law Center

Press freedom issues are the focus of this exceptional internship opportunity. Apply now and launch your journalism career!

Interested in improving your reporting and news writing skills while getting a taste of life in the nation's capital? Would you like to cover legislation that affects thousands of journalists across the country, as well as important press freedom and freedom of information court cases? The Student Press Law Center has internship positions available in its Washington, D.C.,-area office each school semester and during the summer. The internships are open to undergraduate and graduate students as well as recent college graduates with experience in news writing and an interest in media law.

Since 1974, the SPLC has been the only national organization devoted exclusively to monitoring the free press rights of high school and college journalists. The Center serves as a source of legal advice and assistance for the student media and the public, providing information on subjects ranging from libel and invasion of privacy to access to records and censorship.

Journalism Interns at the Student Press Law Center are a crucial component in the work of the SPLC. Interns research, write and help edit the Report, the Center's thrice-yearly magazine that chronicles student press law cases and controversies from around the country. Interns serve as the magazine's news staff, reporting and writing news stories. Interns also write News Flashes and analysis pieces for the Center's popular Web site. Interns have followed the efforts of state legislatures around the country to pass laws protecting high school students' free press rights and covered landmark litigation by the college and commercial media seeking access to campus crime information. Their stories have ranged from exploring the impact of school violence on students' free expression rights to antagonism between the student media and the NCAA.

But an SPLC internship isn't all work. Interns join in issue-oriented seminars organized by the SPLC and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Seminars explore such topics as working with confidential sources, government efforts to regulate the Internet and more. Speakers have included Supreme Court reporter Tony Mauro and members of The Washington Post's in-house legal counsel staff.

Interns also experience life in our nation's capital, with easy access to the national monuments, the U.S. Supreme Court, the Smithsonian Institution and other public attractions.

Full-time spring and fall school semester interns receive a living expense stipend of $3,000 and full-time summer interns receive a stipend of $2,300 and may be eligible for a $700 scholarship from the Associated Collegiate Press (see below). Many interns arrange to receive academic credit from their college or university with the support of the SPLC. Applications for part-time internships are accepted on a space available basis.

To apply for an internship, send a cover letter describing your interest in and qualifications for working with the Student Press Law Center along with a resume, samples of your news writing and the names and telephone numbers of two professional or academic references. (Applicants who wish to be considered for the College Media Advisers-funded internship -- available in the summer only -- should send a letter from their adviser recommending them for the position and indicating that the adviser is a member in good standing of College Media Advisers.)

Although there is no formal deadline for receiving applications, applicants are strongly encouraged to send in their materials by February 1 for the summer internship, July 1 for the fall internship and November 1 for the spring internship. Hiring decisions are made on a rotating basis.

Spring Internship (January - May): November 1
Summer Internship (May - August): February 1
Fall Internship (September - December): July 1

Send your application to:

Frank LoMonte, Executive Director
Student Press Law Center
1101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1100
Arlington, VA 22209-2275

Louis Ingelhart Journalism Internships at the Student Press Law Center

To honor the life's work of SPLC board member emeritus Louis Ingelhart, in January 2007, the Student Press Law Center created the Louis Ingelhart Journalism Internship. Ingelhart, journalism professor emeritus at Ball State University died Jan. 7, 2007, at the age of 86. Ingelhart was regarded by many as the first professional advocate for the free press rights of high school and college journalists. From his years as a high school student newspaper editor in the 1930s to being a high school and college media adviser and scholar, Ingelhart was known throughout the nation as an advocate for student journalism and the ability of students to make their publications their own. He served on the SPLC board from virtually the organization's founding until becoming a board member emeritius in 2000. See the application instructions above. If you'd like to make a contribution in honor of Dr. Louis Ingelhart to support this internship, go to www.splc.org/give.

Scripps Howard Foundation Journalism Internships at the Student Press Law Center

Thanks to a generous grant from the Scripps Howard Foundation, the Student Press Law Center offers six Scripps Howard Foundation Journalism Internships each year. See the application instructions above.

College Media Advisers Summer Journalism Internship at the Student Press Law Center

Thanks to a generous grant from College Media Advisers Inc., the national association of college media professionals, each summer the Student Press Law Center offers one full-time journalism internship to a student on the staff of a student news medium whose adviser is a member of College Media Advisers. Applicants who wish to be considered for the College Media Advisers Summer Journalism Internship at the SPLC should should follow the application instructions described above. In addition, they should send a letter from their media adviser recommending them for the position and indicating that the adviser is a member in good standing of College Media Advisers.

Associated Collegiate Press Scholarship for Student Press Law Center Journalism Interns

Students who are selected for a Student Press Law Center full-time summer journalism internship may be eligible for a $700 scholarship from the Associated Collegiate Press. The scholarship competition is open to undergraduate students who are on the staff of a student publication that is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press. The scholarship applicant must be accepted for a full-time internship at the Student Press Law Center during the summer term. Scholarship recipients will be selected based on journalism experience, writing ability and commitment to press freedom and will be notified of their award at the time they are offered an internship. Up to two scholarships will be awarded each summer. The scholarship will be paid at the completion of the internship. Application for the Associated Collegiate Press Scholarship for Student Press Law Center Journalism Interns should be submitted to the SPLC with the internship application materials. No formal scholarship application is required. Applicants should send a letter from their publication editor or adviser stating that during the school term immediately proceeding the period of the internship for which they are applying, they have served on the staff of that publication and that the publication is currently a member in good standing of the Associated Collegiate Press. For information about membership in the Associated Collegiate Press, contact: Associated Collegiate Press 2221 University Ave., S.E. Minneapolis, MN 55414 (612) 625-8335

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