Cognitive Warfare Task Force Internship Summer

Position: Cognitive Warfare Task Force Internship Summer 2026
ISW Internship Program Overview

ISW is offering in-person, remote, and hybrid internships for Summer 2026. Instructions to apply for the scholarship are below.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) is committed to training the next generation of national security leaders through its innovative educational programs. ISW seeks motivated and experienced college students or recent graduates to join our intern team. ISW offers internships across diverse research portfolios and departments, including Russia, China, and Iran's Axis of Resistance. ISW also offers internships in National Security and Intelligence Analysis, and Geospatial Intelligence and National Security Technologies and in non-profit management, including Communications.

Why Work for ISW?

ISW believes that ground realities must drive the formulation of strategy and policy. In pursuit of this principle, ISW conducts detailed open-source intelligence analysis to provide timely and accurate information on current conflicts and security threats directly to policymakers and warfighters.

Interns at ISW have an unparalleled opportunity to analyze conflicts in ways that directly inform policymakers on some of the most pressing issues facing American national security. Our interns work directly with analysts. They receive classroom education, regular leadership engagement, and a chance to work with cutting-edge technologies employed in business and the intelligence community. Interns have the opportunity to stand at the front lines of military research and policy development, tackling the latest crises in the headlines.

The ISW Internship Program is one of three core education programs housed within The General David H. Petraeus Center for Emerging Leaders, launched to identify, educate, and develop the future cadre of leaders committed to America's national security. ISW views interns as an integral component of its team. ISW has worked with interns to draft, edit, and publish their own research under the mentorship of senior analysts.

It has also hired many interns onto its staff.

Cognitive Warfare Task Force Internship:
Interns will support the development of the new Cognitive Warfare Task Force at ISW, which aims to analyze and visualize adversary information operations and warfare against the United States and its allies. Interns are expected to collect, process, analyze, and synthesize intelligence relating to adversary operations in the information environment, psychological operations, emerging information technologies, narratives, and influence campaigns among other related topics.

Interns will also support long-term research assignments and may also have valuable interactions with software partners who are transforming the national security space. Interns will learn to analyze the information environment and how it impacts policy making, kinetic activities, and strategy. This is a full-time internship (five days per week), but part-time work will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Qualifications

• Candidates must have demonstrated interest in information warfare and operations; disinformation/misinformation; artificial intelligence and information technology; international affairs; propaganda and media studies; or strategic communications.

• Candidates should preferably have a demonstrated interest or expertise in national security or cultural issues, particularly relating to Russia, Ukraine, Europe, China, or the Middle East.

• Candidates should preferably possess strong critical language capabilities in Russian, Ukrainian, Mandarin, Korean, Arabic, French, or Spanish.

• Experience conducting research using primary sources in a foreign language is a plus.

• Experience with programming languages such as Python, JavaScript, or HTML; and data visualization tools such as Adobe, Excel, ArcGIS and photoshop are a plus.

• Experience with Excel and other data management systems is a major plus.

• Candidates must possess excellent writing, editing, research, and oral communication skills.

• Candidates must display the ability to conduct complex tasks in a timely and efficient manner.

• Candidates should be self-motivated, independent, creative, and capable of…