Application Guide
How to Apply for KIP Spring 2027 - Digital Communications Intern - R Street Institute
at Standtogether
🏢 About Standtogether
The R Street Institute is a nonpartisan, nonprofit public policy research organization that champions free markets and limited, effective government, and it is a key partner of Stand Together Fellowships. Unlike many think tanks, R Street prides itself on pragmatic, solution-oriented policy work and a collaborative, entrepreneurial culture where interns are given real responsibility. Working here means contributing to a mission-driven team that values intellectual diversity and practical impact over partisan talking points.
About This Role
As a Digital Communications Intern, you will be the digital Swiss Army knife for R Street's content team, transforming articles, podcasts, videos, and events into multi-platform digital packages. You will directly support social media strategy, graphic design, video editing, website publishing, and analytics, helping to amplify R Street's policy ideas to a broader audience. This is a hands-on role where your creative and technical skills will be used daily to drive engagement and measure success.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve editing a short video clip from a recent policy panel for Instagram, designing a quote graphic for Twitter, scheduling social posts for the week, and pulling analytics to report on last week's campaign performance. You'll also attend team meetings to brainstorm digital strategies for upcoming reports and collaborate with policy staff to ensure messaging is accurate and engaging. Expect a mix of creative work, data analysis, and cross-team coordination.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who Standtogether Is Looking For
- A versatile digital generalist with hands-on experience in at least three of these areas: social media management, graphic design (Canva/Adobe), video editing (Premiere/Final Cut), website publishing (WordPress), or digital analytics (Google Analytics).
- A creative storyteller who can take a long-form article or podcast and repurpose it into compelling social posts, infographics, short videos, and email snippets.
- A self-starter comfortable working remotely, managing multiple projects, and meeting deadlines in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
- Someone with a strong interest in public policy, free markets, or nonprofit communications, and a desire to learn how digital strategy supports advocacy and education.
📝 Tips for Applying to Standtogether
Create a digital portfolio that showcases your ability to repurpose a single piece of content (e.g., a policy article) into multiple formats—include a mock social media post, a graphic, and a short video clip.
In your application, explicitly mention R Street's policy areas (e.g., tech policy, criminal justice reform) and suggest one digital idea for how you would promote a recent R Street publication.
Demonstrate familiarity with the tools R Street uses (e.g., Canva, Adobe Creative Suite, WordPress, Google Analytics) by listing them in your resume and providing specific examples of projects where you used them.
Since this is a Stand Together Fellowship, highlight any experience or coursework related to free markets, limited government, or civil society, and explain why you align with these principles.
If applying remotely, emphasize your ability to work independently, communicate proactively, and manage time zones—perhaps by sharing an example of a remote project you successfully completed.
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
["Your specific digital skill set and how it matches the role's need for a 'versatile digital generalist'—use concrete examples of content you've repurposed across platforms.", "Your understanding of R Street's mission and policy areas, and why you're excited to apply digital communications to promote free-market solutions.", 'Your ability to work remotely and collaboratively, highlighting any previous remote internship or project experience.', 'A brief proposal for how you would approach packaging a recent R Street podcast or article into a multi-channel digital campaign, showing creativity and strategic thinking.']
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → Explore R Street's website, especially their blog, podcasts, and recent reports, to understand their policy priorities and content style.
- → Research Stand Together Fellowships and their philosophy (e.g., principled entrepreneurship, free markets) to ensure alignment with the program's values.
- → Review R Street's social media channels (Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram) to analyze what types of posts perform well and where there might be gaps you could fill.
- → Look up the backgrounds of R Street's communications team on LinkedIn to understand their expertise and potential interviewers.
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Submitting a generic application that doesn't mention R Street or digital communications specifically—show you've done your homework.
- Focusing only on one digital skill (e.g., graphic design) without demonstrating versatility across social, video, and analytics.
- Ignoring the policy context—this is a think tank, so showing no interest in or understanding of R Street's policy areas is a major turnoff.
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!