The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University is
preparing to welcome another stellar crew of students to join us as
summer interns!
We are looking to engage a diverse group of students who are interested
in studying -- and changing the world through -- the Internet and new
communications technologies; who are driven, funny, and kind; and who
would like to join our amazing community in Cambridge this summer for
10 weeks of shared research and exchange.
Information about the summer program, eligibility, and links
to the application procedures can be found below and at
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/getinvolved/internships_summer.
The deadline for summer 2012 internship applications is Sunday,
February 12 2012 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Please share word of the opportunity to great candidates, and help
us continue developing our shared network of movers and shakers working
to advance scholarship with impact.
All best,
Becca
-----
Each summer the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard
University swings open the doors of our big yellow house to welcome a
group of talented and curious students as full-time interns -
Berkterns!
- who are passionate about the promise of the Internet. Finding
connected and complementary research inquiries among their diverse
backgrounds, students represent all levels of study, are being trained
in disciplines across the board, and come from universities all over
the world to tackle issues related to the core of Berkman’s research
agenda, including law, technology, innovation, and knowledge; the
relationship between Internet and civic activity; and technology, law,
and development.
Summer interns jump head first into the swirl of the Berkman
universe, where they are deeply and substantively involved in the
operation of our research projects and efforts. Becoming invaluable
contributors to the Center’s operation and success, interns conduct
collaborative and independent research under the guidance of Berkman
staff, fellows, and faculty. Specific roles, tasks, and experiences
vary depending on Center needs and interns' skills; a select list of
expected opportunities for Summer 2012 is below. Traditionally, the
workload of each intern is primarily based under one project or suite
of projects, with encouragement and flexibility to get involved in
additional projects all across the Center.
In addition to joining research teams, summer interns participate
in special lectures with Berkman Center faculty and fellows, engage
each other through community experiences like weekly interns discussion
hours, and attend Center-wide events and gatherings with members of the
wider Berkman community. As well, each year interns establish new
channels for fun and learning, such as organizing topical debates,
establishing reading groups and book clubs, producing podcasts and
videos, and hosting potlucks, cook-offs, and BBQs (fortunately for us,
people share).
The word "awesome" has been thrown around to describe our
internships,
but don't take our word for it. Zack
McCune, a summer intern from 2008,
had
this to say: "it has been an
enchanting summer working at the
berkman center
for internet &
society. everyday, i get to hang out with some of the most
brilliant people on the planet. we talk, we write (emails), we blog, we
laugh, we play rock band. and when things need to get done, we stay
late hyped on free coffee and leftover food. it is a distinct honor to
be considered a peer among such excellent people. and i am not just
talking about the fellows, staff, and faculty, though they are all
outstanding. no, i mean my peers as in my fellow interns, who are
almost definitely the ripening next generation of changemakers."
Time Commitment:
Summer internships are full time positions (35 hours/week) for 10
weeks. Our Summer 2012 program runs from Monday, June 4 through Friday,
August 10.
Payment:
Interns are paid $11.50 an hour, with the exception of a number of
opportunities for law students who are expected to receive some version
of summer public interest funding (more about these specific cases at
the link for law students below).
Please be forewarned that payment may not be sufficient to cover
living expenses in the Boston area. No other benefits are provided, and
interns must make their own housing, insurance and transportation
arrangements.
Commitment to Diversity:
The work and well-being of the Berkman Center for Internet &
Society at Harvard University are strengthened profoundly by the
diversity of our network and our differences in background, culture,
experience, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, and much
more. We actively seek and welcome applications from people of color,
women, the LGBTQ community, and persons with disabilities, as well as
applications from researchers and practitioners from across the
spectrum of disciplines and methods. The roots of this deep commitment
are many and, appropriately, diverse. We are not nearly far enough
along in this regard, and we may never be. It is a constant process in
which there remains much to learn. We welcome your inquiries, comments
and ideas on how we may continue to improve.
Eligibility:
- Internships are open to students enrolled across the spectrum of
disciplines.
- Internships are open to students at different levels of academic
study including those in bachelors, masters, law, and Ph.D programs
(some flexibility with high school students is possible). Some
positions will require that interns be enrolled in a particular kind of
academic program.
- Summer interns do not have to be U.S. residents or in school in the
U.S., and we welcome and encourage international students to apply.
- Summer interns do not need an existing affiliation with Harvard
University.
To Apply:
We know what you're thinking. Yes please. I want that. That sounds
magical. Did I mention that I make a mean artichoke dip? Here's
what you should do...
Law students:
If you are a law student interested in conducting research with the
Berkman Center this summer, please find important additional
information and application instructions
here.
Students from all other disciplines:
If you are a student from any discipline except law interested in
conducting research with Berkman this summer, please find more
information and application instructions
here.
Required application materials for all include:
- A cover letter describing your skills and interests. When developing
your cover letter, you may wish to consider the following questions:
What has led you to pursue research with the Berkman Center and the
issues we study? What would you like to gain from working with us this
summer, and what will you contribute? How do you think the experience
might influence your future efforts? Please feel welcome to address
these and/or other topics you would like to share with us.
- A current resume.
- The contact information for two references (professional or
academic).
The application deadline for all students for Summer 2012 is
Sunday, February 12 2012 at 11:59
p.m. ET.
We look forward to hearing from you!
----
Select Expected Summer 2012 Opportunities:
Broadband
Interns with the the Broadband Project will conduct primary and
secondary research into fiber deployment, both in the US and abroad.
Research topics may include municipal fiber networks, how competition
impacts price and speed, and the role of spectrum in the broadband
debate. More information about the Broadband Project can be found at:
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/research/broadband.
Civic Engagement in Developing and Transitioning Countries
Interns will undertake a variety of research and writing around
the use, impact, and design of digital tools for civic engagement in
developing and transitioning countries. Inquiries will be broad-based,
but particular attention will be given to the study of the promotion of
topics such as transparency, accountability, justice and human rights,
with a focus on Nigeria.
Cloud Computing Law and Policy
In Spring 2012, the Cloud Computing team at the Berkman Center in
collaboration with KEIO University (Japan), the NEXA Center (Italy),
and the University of St. Gallen (Switzerland) will make public its
wiki-based repository of analyses, resources, and case studies on
emerging issues, law, policy and current trends related to cloud
computing. Building upon this foundation and under the guidance of
Executive Director Urs Gasser, we will be developing specific research
and analysis that leverages our international collaboration and
existing resources, and ideally creates briefing materials that are
useful to policymakers, industry participants, civil society members,
and other actors. Interns will work directly with the team to develop
associated research.
Cyberlaw Clinic
Interns with the Cyberlaw Clinic contribute to a wide range of
real-world litigation, client counseling, licensing, advocacy and
legislative projects covering a broad spectrum of legal issues
involving the Internet, new technology, intellectual property law,
youth online safety and child protection. The Clinic provides
high-quality, pro-bono legal services to appropriate individuals, small
start-ups, non-profit groups and government entities regarding
cutting-edge issues of the Internet, new technology and intellectual
property. Interns in the Cyberlaw Clinic can expect direct hands-on
experience working with clients under the supervision of the Clinic's
staff attorneys. More information about the Cyberlaw Clinic can be
found at:
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/teaching/cyberlawclinic.
Interns with the Cyberlaw Clinic will be students currently enrolled
in a J.D. program in the United States.
Cybersecurity
Since Spring 2010, the Berkman Center team has been developing a
cybersecurity wiki under the guidance of Jack Goldsmith. The wiki
provides a set of evolving resources on cybersecurity, broadly-defined,
and includes an annotated list of relevant articles and literature.
This summer, we will be seeking to update this wiki by adding key
resources that have been released since 2010. We also have a series of
potential next steps, including, for example, an survey course and an
analysis of the 'rhetoric' of cybsecurity, that we also plan to pick up
and develop with summer interns.
Digital Libraries
Summer interns working on digital library issues will conduct research
related to library users, content, governance, funding, publishing
models, and related issues; stay abreast of developments in the digital
library field (including news related to e-publishing, copyright,
linked open data, and other areas); blog regularly on these issues; and
contribute to the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA)
wiki
and
website.
Depending on summer needs,
they may also have the opportunity to create multimedia for the DPLA
website. Summer interns will also conduct research on the legal aspects
and considerations related to these issues. More information about DPLA
can be found at:
http://dp.la.
Digital Media Law Project
Summer interns at the Digital Media Law Project will work on a wide
range of legal research and writing projects relating to media law,
intellectual property, and the intersection of journalism and the
internet. In past years, interns have updated the
Legal
Guide to media
law topics, developed entries for the
database of
threats
against online publishers, commented on current issues in law and media
on the
blog,
and provided research and drafting assistance on
amicus
briefs. Interns may also be asked to assist with the operation and
expansion of the
Online Media
Legal Network, an attorney referral service for digital publishers,
and with other projects that the DMLP undertakes in conjunction with
its partner organizations around the world. More information on summer
internships with the DMLP can be found on the DMLP website at:
http://www.citmedialaw.org/about/summer-internships.
Freedom of Expression
Summer interns for this suite of projects, which includes Herdict,
Internet & Democracy, OpenNet Initiative, Global Network
Initiative, and others, will blog regularly about issues concerning
online freedom of expression; contribute to related data gathering
efforts using online sources; conduct research on internet filtering,
monitoring, and control efforts around the globe; update project
Twitter and Facebook accounts; and assist international partners. In
the past, freedom of expression interns have also contributed to
literature reviews, hand coded online content, and supported research
on foreign language blogospheres, Twitter and online communities in
Russia, China, Iran and the Middle East. More information about some of
Berkman’s work on freedom of expression can be found at the following
links:
http://www.herdict.org/web/
;
http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/idblog/
;
http://opennet.net/
;
http://globalnetworkinitiative.org/.
Geek Cave
Help Berkman's geek team keep the Center running. Interns joining the
Geek Cave may extend open source software, build scalable websites, or
manage the mixed desktop network that keeps us moving. If you’ve been
to a Berkman site, you’ve seen the work of the geeks; we also work with
partners across Harvard University. Our team works with ruby, perl,
php, bash, jQuery, PostgreSQL, MySQL and a slew of other tools, and you
can find more information at Berkman’s github:
https://github.com/berkmancenter.
Harvard Open Access Project (HOAP)
HOAP fosters
open access
(OA) to research within Harvard, fosters OA beyond Harvard, undertakes
research and policy analysis on OA, and provides OA to timely and
accurate information about OA itself. Interns with the HOAP will will
add relevant information to the Open Access Directory (OAD), a
wiki-based encyclopedia of OA; and will contribute to the the Open
Access Tracking Project (OATP), a social-tagging project organizing
knowledge about OA. There may be opportunities to write research
reports on commissioned topics, draft submissions to public-policy
consultations, and help organize OA-related events on campus.
H2O
Interns working with H2O, a platform that allows professors to create
entirely online casebooks that are easily sharable and remixable, will
assist in the development of new casebook instances. Following the
successful pilot of Prof. Jonathan’s Zittrain’s Torts Class Casebook in
the Fall of 2011, this summer we will create several additional
casebooks with other Harvard Law School professors. Classes may include
Advanced Civil Procedure and Criminal Law. Law students who have an
interest in deepening their knowledge in these subjects, as well as
extremely dedicated aspiring law students, will work closely with the
professors to deliver an entirely online casebook. More information
about H2O can be found at:
h2odev.law.harvard.edu.
Information Quality in the Digital Age
Under the guidance of Executive Director Urs Gasser, this project will
focus on the multi-faceted phenomenon of "information quality" in the
digital age. Building upon previous research efforts, the next stage of
exploration will focus on electronic media and work towards a theory of
information quality in the digitally networked environment, with a
particular interest in the role and interplay of law, social norms,
technology, and markets.
Interoperability
In June 2012, Urs Gasser and John Palfrey will release their book on
Interoperability:
The Promise and Perils of Highly Interconnected Systems. The book
is inspired by their 2005 study and paper—
“Breaking
Down Digital Barriers: When and How Information and ICT
Interoperability Drives Innovation” —which examined the
relationship between interoperability and innovation in the ICT
environment.
A key input into the process has been the development of supporting
case studies that focus on lessons learned from sectors where
interoperability is critical, such as transportation, currency markets,
and energy. Interns will help to finalize existing cases for release,
develop new ones, and also contribute to developing a set of associated
online resources online, including a wiki and blog. More information
about our Interoperability research can be found at:
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/interop/.
metaLAB
The metaLAB is a research unit dedicated to innovation and
experimentation in the arts, media and humanities, and metaLAB work
ranges from inquiry into the history of media to advanced, open-source
software development to installation art practices using hacked sensor
devices. Summer interns will participate in current core research
areas, including: modeling new forms of multimedia publishing and
documentary art practice; creating augmented exhibitions using
digitized cultural heritage and library collections; and organizing
interdisciplinary gatherings of humanists, technologists, artists,
legal scholars and other experimental thinkers. More information about
the metaLAB can be found at:
http://metalab.harvard.edu/.
Special Projects - Professor Urs Gasser
A summer intern will work on a variety of projects undertaken by
Berkman's Executive Director Urs Gasser (e.g. work on privacy,
globalization of law, cyberliability). Tasks include research for
presentations, op-eds, and articles. This position requires the ability
to find, absorb, critically analyze, and debate large amounts of
written and other media materials from sources including scholarly
articles, news articles and blogs, and interviews. Knowledge in German
or an Asian language is a plus. More information about Urs’ research
can be found at:
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/ugasser.
Special Projects - Professor Jonathan Zittrain
A summer intern in this position will work on a variety of projects
undertaken by Professor Jonathan Zittrain, assisting in a variety of
research areas (e.g. human computing, mesh networking, and Internet
filtering). Summer contributions include research for conferences and
presentations (including, for example, JZ’s recent
Colbert
Report debate); brainstorming article outlines; fact-checking
materials; and reviewing original article or paper drafts. This
position requires the ability to find, absorb, critically analyze, and
debate large amounts of written and other media materials from sources
including scholarly articles, news articles and blogs, and interviews
with public policymakers. More information about JZ’s research can be
found at:
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/jzittrain.
Youth and Media Lab
During a summer at the
Youth
and Media Lab, interns will contribute to various research,
advocacy, and development initiatives around youth and technology. By
researching young people’s interactions with digital media such as the
Internet, cell phones, and video games, we seek to address the issues
their practices raise, learn how to harness the opportunities their
digital fluency presents, and shape our regulatory and educational
frameworks in a way that advances the public interest.
A summer intern will work for one of the Lab’s three main tracks:
exploratory research, curriculum development, and tool development. The
research track includes literature reviews, surveys, focus groups, and
one-on-one interviews to better map youth’s usage of technology.
Building upon these findings, the curriculum track aims to develop and
test educational modules in collaboration with youth, designed for both
formal and informal learning settings. The modules address youth’s
awareness and understanding of their technology usage and bear
important policy implications. Third, the Lab’s team seeks to develop a
set of media literacy tools (“navigation aids for cyberspace”)
including an application to assess news quality, a set of badges, etc.
Spending a summer with the Lab means joining a diverse and creative
team. Past summer interns have brought expertise and enthusiasm for
human-computer interaction, digital art, filmmaking, radio production,
joining team members excelling in areas such as law and policy,
communications, and the social sciences. The Lab’s intellectual
diversity encourages collective brainstorming and discussion of how
each individual team member can advance the Lab’s agenda. More
information about the Youth and Media Lab can be found at:
www.youthandmedia.org.