Ministry of External Affairs is launching the second edition of the MEA Internships Programme for the year 2023-24.
The second edition of the programme is aimed towards continuing the aim of the Ministry to bring in more focus on MEA; to provide value to the interns; to ensure better gender inclusivity and to increase diversity in terms of qualifications, domicile and socio-economic status amongst the cohort of interns engaged by the Ministry.
Eligibility
Internships at MEA headquarters shall generally be open to Indian citizens with a minimum educational qualification of a graduate degree from a recognized university or who are in their final year of the undergraduate programme, where an internship is a mandatory part of their final year curriculum.
The age of the candidate should not exceed 25 years as on 31 December of the year of internship.
Terms
Every year, internships will be offered in two terms of six months each viz. April to September and October to March.
Vacancy
The Ministry will engage a maximum of 30 interns during each time.
Internship Duration
Each intern will be engaged for a minimum period of one month and a maximum period of three months.
Diversity
In line with the goal of taking the Ministry and foreign policy closer to the people from all parts of the country, all efforts will be made to ensure increased diversity amongst the group of interns in each term with respect to gender, underprivileged sections, geographical domicile and representation from both urban and rural areas.
Candidates from districts under the Transformation of Aspirational Districts Programme (TADP) and those belonging to SC/ST/OBC/EWS categories shall be given priority at different stages in the selection process.
Location
Delhi
Selection
- The selection process will be entirely online at www.internship.mea.gov.in with applications, scrutiny, selection, allocation of Division, notification, extension and certification to be managed on a dedicated internship portal of the Ministry. Each candidate needs to register on the internship portal and obtain access credentials to participate in the process.
- The selection process will consist of two stages viz. Preliminary Screening and Personal Interview. The process will follow a ‘quota cum weightage’ system whereby applicants belonging to 14 States and 4 Union Territories will be considered in each term as per the table below:
| Term | States | Union Territories |
| Term – 1 (April – September) | Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra | Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, and Delhi |
| Term – 2 (October – March) | Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand & West Bengal | Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry |
- As per the above table, in each term, there may be 26 interns from the 14 states put together, 02 interns from the 4 Union Territories put together and 02 more interns with maximum marks from TADP districts / underprivileged sections of the society.
- A minimum of 30% may be filled by women candidates. Weightage will be based on academic performance assessed by the percentage of marks obtained in +2 and graduation exams.
- Candidates should apply online only. State-wise merit lists will be prepared separately for male and female candidates – by elimination based on academic performance in +2 and graduation exams. Priority will be given to applicants from TADP districts during the Preliminary Screening stage and to applicants belonging to SC/ST/OBC/EWS categories in the Personal Interview stage.
- The total number of candidates called for interviews will be three times the number of interns to be engaged in each term. Candidates selected in the merit lists will be called for a personal interview to be conducted by videoconferencing. A maximum of 30 candidates will be selected from the interview process and offered internships. If any selected candidate opts out, the next candidate in the merit list from the individual state will be offered the opportunity.
Honorarium and airfare
An honorarium of INR 10,000 per month will be paid to each intern to defray basic costs.
Cost of one-time to and fro air travel subject to a ceiling of the prevailing economy class airfare between the State capital and Delhi, from the domicile State or from the college/university of the selected candidates will be provided. The interns would be responsible for their boarding and lodging in Delhi during the period of their internship.
Obligations of the intern
- The internship programme provides an introduction to the process of formulation of foreign policy and its implementation by the Government of India. Interns will be assigned specific topics of work by the concerned Head of Division (HOD) and may be required to conduct research, write reports, analyze evolving developments or carry out any other task entrusted to them by the HOD.
- At the end of the internship, each intern shall submit a detailed report on the work carried out and, if required, make a presentation on it. The outcome of study during the internship will remain as intellectual property of the Ministry of External Affairs and interns shall not use it without prior approval of the Ministry. The intern shall maintain full confidentiality of any information relating to the Ministry of Externa Affairs.
Termination of internship
Selection to the internship programme at the Ministry of External Affairs is strictly subject to necessary security clearances. The Ministry may terminate the engagement of an intern at any point in time as it deems fit, without giving any reason.
The decision of the Ministry shall be final in this regard. An intern can choose to terminate the internship by giving prior notice of one week to the Ministry. In such cases, the cost of air travel, if any, will be recovered from the intern.
To apply for MEA Internship Policy 2023, click here.
