UISCE Interns

The UISCE Interns Experience

Overview of UISCE Interns

UISCE’S AIM is “to creatively and sensitively explore the resistance to peacebuilding as resources for transformation” – and it is with this aim that our international interns engage.

The UISCE Intern scheme is designed as a middle ground between the volunteer and scholar roles. It involves a shorter and more flexible stay, offering a broad and varied experience.

As an intern, you’ll have a mixed working schedule that includes both research opportunities and practical tasks to help run the centre. On the research side, you’ll support scholars with a range of projects and topics, while also having some freedom to pursue your own interests. This offers a valuable opportunity to gain experience across multiple areas. On the practical side, you’ll work alongside our volunteers in a lively and international team. Tasks may include collecting food, cooking meals, cleaning, and helping to maintain and improve the centre’s facilities.

To learn more about working alongside Scholars and Volunteers, check-out their sections on the website, also under ‘People’.

Typical day as an Intern

Life as an intern at UISCE offers a dynamic combination of practical involvement, research support, and community living. Based at our campus in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland — on the historic site of the 1987 Remembrance Day bomb — you'll be living and working alongside a diverse, international group of scholars and volunteers.

• Start the day at 09:30 with a short team meeting, where interns, scholars, and volunteers catch up, share updates, and outline plans for the day
• Spend the morning supporting scholars with a variety of tasks — this might involve helping with interviews, transcription, background reading, or research tasks
• Break for lunch, with access to a well-stocked kitchen and cooked dinners usually provided Monday to Thursday (depending on volunteer numbers)
• In the afternoon, assist the volunteer team with general duties such as food collection, preparing meals, maintaining shared spaces, or small improvement projects around the centre
• Finish up around 17:30, with time to relax, unwind in the communal areas, or enjoy Enniskillen’s cafés, pubs, and lakeside walks
• Weekends (Friday to Sunday) are free and often used to explore Ireland, travel with others from the centre, and deepen your understanding of the wider peacebuilding context

The internship is ideal for recent school leavers, students on a university break, or those taking a gap year

Additional Key Information

Placement length for Interns are between 2 months and 6 months, with flexibility for extensions, with workdays typically 9:30 until 16:30, Monday to Thursday. The programme fee is £500 per month, and includes single room accommodation at the Clinton Centre, a shared workspace in our Intec centre, and most food provision. If funding is an issue, please do let us know and we may, depending on your circumstances, be able to secure financial aid. While meals and stocked fridges are nearly always available, supplies depend partly on donations from local food suppliers, so residents may occasionally need to buy additional groceries or if you have special dietary needs.

Information for Applications

  • Ideal Candidate

    • Typically, interns are recent school-leavers, in between undergraduate years, or recently graduated and seeking meaningful experience

    • A reliable and proactive attitude, with the ability to manage tasks independently and take initiative when needed
    • A respectful and open-minded approach, with the ability to engage well with people from a wide range of backgrounds
    • Willingness to contribute to practical tasks — such as cooking, cleaning, and general upkeep — as part of a collaborative, community-based environment
    • A clear interest in peacebuilding in Ireland — while previous experience is welcome, curiosity and a readiness to learn are just as important

  • Application Process

    Stage One: Complete the application form provided above.

    Stage Two: Attend an online interview with Adam, the Scholar/Intern Coordinator. This will be an opportunity to discuss your background, what you hope to contribute to the programme, and for us to get to know you better.

    Stage Three: Take part in a second online interview with Keith, Director of UISCE. This discussion will go into more depth about your proposed research, as well as the history and background of UISCE itself.

    Stage Four: Visit the site to meet the team and experience the environment, ensuring it is the right fit for both sides. Should visa requirements present an obstacle, we can discuss alternative arrangements, including meeting in Dublin

  • What You Will Gain

    • Gain practical experience supporting real-world peacebuilding initiatives, both through research and day-to-day community work
    • Work closely with a diverse international team, building strong collaboration and intercultural communication skills
    • Be part of a unique and supportive community, where shared meals, conversations, and collective living create lasting bonds
    • See the tangible impact of your work in helping maintain and grow a space for dialogue, learning, and social change
    • Develop a wide range of transferable skills, including adaptability, teamwork, and time management, all of which valued for future academic and professional fields