Thank you for your interest in applying to the 2015 Ayn Rand Institute Summer Internship.
You should find most of your questions concerning applications answered on this page. It explains what you will need to prepare, what to submit, how and when to do so, and what to expect once you have applied. As part of the application process, the internship may contact you for a phone interview.
If you have questions after reviewing this page, please email us at intern@aynrand.org. Due to volume, responses to inquiries received near the application deadlines may be delayed.
We review every complete application in full and take all application components into account in our decision. We wish you the best on your application!
Early deadline: Midnight Pacific Time, Sunday, January 19, 2015. Early applicants will either be accepted or waitlisted, and can expect to hear from us by the end of January.
Final deadline: Midnight Pacific Time, Sunday, March 29, 2015. All applicants will be notified of their application decision by mid/late April.
The internship application consists of three components:
1. Online application form
2. Application essay
3. Official transcripts
Fill out the online application form. You must submit your answers via the online form.
Respond to the following (500-word maximum). Use page numbers and include your name in the header of each page. Submit your essay through our document submission manager.
In her lecture “Philosophy: Who Needs It,” available as a free course in ARI Campus and as an essay in her book, Philosophy: Who Needs It, Ayn Rand argues that philosophy is an inescapable need of man. Explain her view, contrasting it with the common cultural refrain “philosophy is impractical.”
Official transcripts from each college/university attended are required. High school transcripts are required only if you are a high school senior or have just begun your undergraduate studies.
Please allow ample time for your educational institution to process your transcript request, especially around winter and spring breaks.
How to submit transcripts:
Preferred: Submit your transcript(s) through our document submission manager.
Alternate: If your school issues electronic transcripts, register the email intern@aynrand.org to receive it. Alternatively, submit a hardcopy by fax to 949-222-6558, or by mail to: Ayn Rand Institute: c/o ARI Summer Internship; 2121 Alton Parkway Suite 250; Irvine, CA 92606.
1. The internship is open to university undergraduates and recent high school and college graduates.
2. The program is designed for students who are new to Ayn Rand's ideas. We consider and accept applicants from every academic discipline.
3. Students must be 18 years or older at the start of the program to participate. Applicants that are under the age of 18, but will be over the age of 18 when the program begins, must provide a letter signed by a parent or legal guardian granting consent to their application. The letter may be mailed or submitted as a pdf through our document submission manager.
4. ARI is unable to sponsor individual applicants’ visas for its internship program and ARI is not able provide any advice about which, if any, visa an applicant may need to participate in ARI’s internship. It is the applicant’s sole responsibility to ensure that he/she has the proper visa, if any, to participate in ARI’s internship program. In addition, ARI cannot and does not provide legal and/or tax advice regarding an applicant’s ability to accept and/or acceptance of any stipends.
5. Applicants must be able to attend the full duration of the program.
6. Completion of the internship does not guarantee or imply future employment with ARI. Interns are not employees of ARI and therefore are not eligible for benefits or rights granted to bona fide employees of ARI, including hourly wages.
7. To qualify for the free book offer you must meet the internship eligibility requirements and your complete application must be received by the final application deadline.
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