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Church Communication: Germany, New Zealand

Dates:
Win: January–April 2023
Spring–Summer: May–August 2023
Fall: September–December 2023

Application Deadlines:
Winter 2023: 3 October 2022
Spring–Summer: 28 January 2023
Fall: 22 February 2023

As an intern in either the Europe Area Office of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Frankfurt, Germany, or the South Pacific Area Office in Auckland, New Zealand, you will have a unique opportunity to improve your communications, journalism, and public relations skills. The core purpose of the Church Communication internship is to build strategic relationships with opinion leaders who affect the reputation of the Church, and whose actions and influence can help or hinder the Church's mission. As such you will be involved with a wide variety of ever-changing activities and people in order to facilitate a proper projection of the Church in the Europe or Pacific areas. Depending on your emphasis in Communications, you could find yourself writing press releases, assisting in planning strategic media interaction, researching various media enquiries, assisting in interview and spokesperson training, developing relationships with opinion leaders, and participating in various modes of social networking and video production.

Click here to apply today!

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Contact Us

Communications Internship Coordinator
280 BRMB
(801) 422-5836
comms_internship@byu.edu

PDF

Program Flyer

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions
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More Information

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Courses

All interns are required to take a minimum of 4 credits of COMMS 496R (or, if approved, 1 credit of COMMS 399R). Students may arrange additional courses with professors pertaining to their major and the type of internship work they will be performing.

Students may not take any other courses on this program, including BYU Online courses, without approval by the program director and ISP.
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Cost

Interns pay BYU undergraduate full-time tuition to participate ($1,324–1,986).

Includes Latter-day Saint undergraduate tuition (4–6 credit hours) and international health insurance.

Does not include airfare, public transportation, meals (variable), housing, personal expenses (variable), or visa.
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Funding Sources

Regular BYU tuition scholarships, Pell Grants, and Federal Insured Student Loans may be applied to study abroad programs.

Students who submit the financial aid section of the ISP application and who have a current FAFSA form on file at the Financial Aid Office (A-41 ASB) will be considered for a Study Abroad scholarship.

Academic departments and colleges may assist with scholarships and grants.

Interns at both locations may be eligible to receive a grant from the School of Communications that can be applied to internship costs. Priority is given to students based on seniority and qualifications. Amount awarded will be determined after acceptance to the program.

Seniors should also apply for the Oscarson Discovery Grant for additional funding. For more info, please contact the Communications Internship Office.

Qualified students are eligible to apply for a School of Communication scholarship upon acceptance into the program. This scholarship is based on financial need beyond the initial grants. Interns are eligible for an additional $1,000. Scholarships are not guaranteed.

Private grants and scholarships outside of BYU may also assist (see kennedy.byu.edu/scholarships).
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Preparation

Students need to be admitted to the communications program and have completed the prerequisites for COMMS 496R. Prerequisite courses are different for each emphasis and can be found by contacting the Communications Internship Office, 280 BRMB, (801) 422-5836, comms_internship@byu.edu.

Although English is the lingua franca for these Area Offices, having other language skills is helpful (including German, French, and Chinese).

Accepted students are required to participate in an international, cross-cultural preparation course (IAS 201, 1 credit hour) held during the second block of the semester before departure.

Part-time students will need to pay an additional tuition fee for enrolling in the prep class.

Students must meet all country- and program-specific COVID and health requirements for travel.
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Housing

The School of Communications will suggest housing options. Students are responsible for making all housing arrangements.
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Travel

Students are responsible for purchasing their own airfare to and from the program sites. Airline reservations must be made through BYU Travel. Students should contact a BYU Travel agent.

BYU Travel
280 HRCB
(801) 422-6293
travel@byu.edu
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Application Process

BYU welcomes students from any university to apply to participate in our study abroad programs. However, internships and direct enrollment programs are limited to BYU Provo students.

Students must be 18 years of age or older to participate.

Visit https://comms.byu.edu/church-communication-interships and download the information packet before applying online.

Complete the online application here. A nonrefundable $35 application fee is required; applicants will be interviewed once the application is complete.

Students will be notified via e-mail of their acceptance into the program. The first payment is due upon acceptance; please refer to the Payment Information document.

Application Deadlines:
Winter: 3 October 2022
Spring–Summer: 28 January 2023
Fall: 22 February 2023
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Program Adjustments

International Study Programs (ISP) reserves the right to cancel this program, revise its offerings, or make any adjustments to the preliminary cost.

If it becomes necessary for ISP to cancel a program, all program payments made to BYU ISP will be refunded to the student’s BYU Financial account.

ISP is the only office authorized to cancel any of its programs.
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Faculty

Steven Thomsen is the faculty director for this program from the School of Communications.

324 BRMB
(801) 422-2078
steven.r.thomsen@gmail.com
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Contact Us

International Study Programs
101 HRCB
(801) 422-3686
isp@byu.edu
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ISP Student Handbook

To see the student handbook, click here.
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Payment Schedule

To see the payment schedule, click here.