The Refugee Legal Aid Project (RLAP) provides information, counseling, referral, representation, and advocacy for asylum-seekers and refugees in Egypt through the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) and resettlement processes.
Each year, RLAP offers several unpaid legal internships for qualified candidates who can join us for at least six months. Volunteer terms begin in January and July. The next cohort of VLAs will begin mid-January 2015 and commit to RLAP through July 2015.
VLAs work under the supervision of RLAP's legal staff. They conduct intake and follow-up interviews with clients, apply refugee law and policy to clients' cases, and prepare written submissions for the UNHCR, the IOM, and other national immigration authorities as appropriate.
VLAs receive training, instruction, and guidance from RLAP staff. Working independently and taking initiative are necessary skills for VLAs. Qualified volunteers will:
- Attend a one-week training session prior to the beginning of their internships
- Work at least 20 hours a week and for a minimum of six months
- Have an interest in international law and refugee issues
- Be flexible and sympathetic to cultural expectations
- Have strong research skills
- Work independently and take initiative
- Write effectively and persuasively
- Work with maturity and professionalism in stressful situations and with emotionally-difficult subject matter
- Write and speak English fluently
- Have their own laptop computers with Microsoft Office
Desired qualifications include:
- Experience with legal analysis (such as law students or graduate students in a relevant field)
- Previous experience working with refugees
- Previous experience living/working in the Middle East and Cairo
- Social work, psychosocial training, or other experience working with vulnerable groups, particularly survivors of violence, torture, trafficking, or SGBV
- Communication skills in Arabic, Oromo, Amharic, Tigrinya, or Somali
How to apply:
To apply as a Volunteer Legal Advocate send your letter of interest, CV, and writing sample of five pages or less torlap.applications@stars-egypt.org with the subject "Intern Application" and the time period for which you are interested in volunteering.
The letter of interest should address your qualifications for the internship and why you are interested in working with RLAP. It should also outline any time commitments you will have outside of our office during the period of your internship (whether you are seeking to work part-time or full-time).
The writing sample should be unedited and in English. An excerpt from an academic paper is acceptable.
