Internship at PRIO

What tasks did you perform during your internship?

–The everyday life of an intern in PRIO is incredibly varied. I have been in practice at the Centre on Gender, Peace and Security (GPS for short), where gender research is particularly in focus. A large part of the field is therefore about competence building and knowledge dissemination, in order to improve and sharpen the research that is carried out. In everyday life, this is reflected in participation in a large number of lectures and seminars at organizations such as NORAD, The Red Cross, The Church City Mission, the Nobel Peace Centre or internally at PRIO. Therefore, much of the working time is spent writing and publishing articles on these topics on the website of the GPS Centre.

Alongside this, I have had the opportunity to experience what it is like to work with

research, by starting a literature review within the theme "women, religion and peace mediation". It has been very exciting to learn more about these subjects, and incredibly useful to practice this type of data collection ahead of my master's thesis.

The last part of my tasks has been linked to logistics coordination and planning for the implementation of the UN's «High Level Seminar on Gender and Inclusive Mediation Strategies», which was organized in Oslo in April. This seminar brings together, in collaboration with the UN and the Finnish CMI (Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation), peace brokers and top-level experts to share knowledge and experiences around the importance of having ‘gender lenses’ and focus on inclusion in the development of peace agreements.

How did you use skills you have acquired from your education at the Faculty of Humanities?

– As the PRIO GPS Centre works directly with research related to gender issues, it is crucial to have a good academic foundation. Everything from the conversations in everyday life to the larger events often discuss different gendered nuances around peace mediation, conflict-related sexual violence, or climate change. Therefore, how are people affected differently in these situations based on gender and gender expression?

For me, it has been particularly crucial to have taken the subject KFL4065 - Gender, Peace and Conflict, in order to have the basic knowledge of the UN's women, peace and security agenda, which is central to much of the work done at the GPS Centre. More generally, the academic background has made it possible to work in a structured and efficient manner, understand and process the information you get during various seminars and events, and finally convey this as online articles.

What do you think is or was the greatest benefit from your internship?

– First of all, it is a very good way to gain work experience! I also find it very motivating to see what my education can be used in "real life", especially since the study bubble sometimes is feeling precisely like a bubble - a little distant from working life. Therefore, it is quite nice to be confirmed that this is not the case.

In addition, it has been very nice to meet so many incredible talented professionals and have the opportunity to get to know important contacts in this field of research. This is also a very pleasant process because everyone is so incredibly welcoming and helpful!

Anything else you would like to add?

– I highly recommend applying for an internship, if you have the opportunity! It is incredibly exciting and instructive to work with your field og study in a different way than standard lectures or by reading articles in the reading room.

Regarding PRIO specifically, I can also say that it is an incredibly professional, tidy and safe place to do an internship, which makes the experience very nice. So, if what you like from academia is learning, and you might consider a career in the research field, then PRIO is an extremely good fit.

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