In a multilingual environment, interns are given the opportunity to gain work and research experience at one of the Max Weber Foundation 's eleven humanities institutes abroad. The internship serves to deepen academic interests and knowledge, as well as to further develop organisational and social skills.

The internship programme is open to enrolled students on Bachelor's or Master's degree programmes. The internship programme lasts a maximum of 3 months, but at least 6 weeks.

The Orient-Institut Beirut (OIB) offers two fields of activity for internships:

     a) in the library of the OIB

The Orient Institute Beirut particularly promotes young librarians by offering specialised internships in the OIB's academic library.

These internships are aimed in particular at students in library and information science or students of Middle Eastern studies subjects.

Basic knowledge of of the transliteration rules for cataloguing holdings in Arabic script (RAK-ISL or RDA) and of original script cataloguing will be an asset. Basic knowledge of the Arabic language and literature is required. Please provide evidence of such knowledge in your application.

     b) In the area of research/publications/events

The OIB also offers internships for students of all disciplines listed in our mission statement - including research work for ongoing research projects at the OIB; proofreading scholarly papers; editorial assistance for our Annual Report, or curating and regularly updating the news & analysis and blog sections on our website, as well as editorial support for the OIB's publication series and administrative tasks for special publications. Interns can also gain experience in preparing and organising conferences, workshops and seminars and flyers, posters and information material.

The OIB supports mandatory and voluntary internships:

1) Mandatory internships: only for students enrolled at German universities

Applications from students at German universities who are required to complete an internship as part of their degree programme will be prioritised by the OIB in the selection process. The content of the internship, the duration and weekly working hours may be subject to the regulations of the individual university. Please include these details in your application.

2) Voluntary internships: open to students enrolled in German and international universities

Voluntary internships are offered for a period of at least 4 weeks. The maximum duration is 3 months. This applies to all internships at the Max Weber Foundation and its affiliated institutes. If possible, internships should start on the first day of the month.

To apply for an internship, you must be enrolled at your university for the entire duration of the internship. Good knowledge of English and Arabic (at least 3 semesters of Arabic) is essential for the internship.

The internship is supervised by the vice-director or head librarian of the OIB. If you are interested in working on a research project by one of our OIB research associates, you should also contact the person directly. Check https://www.orient-institut.org/support/calls-grants.html for internship calls.

General information on remuneration and accommodation:

In accordance with the Max Weber Foundation's principles for the employment of interns, an expense allowance of 450 euros per month is paid for voluntary and compulsory internships.

It is possible to take up a guest room at the institute. In this case, the rent of 282 euros per month will be deducted from this sum. The room may have to be shared with another trainee of the same gender.

For students not enrolled in Germany, only voluntary internships can be offered.

We encourage all applicants to apply for a DAAD short-term scholarship ( link )

Application procedure and process:

Please apply one year before you want to start the internship, but at least 9 months in advance. Submit your application with all the necessary documents. You will be informed of our decision within one month.

A short-term scholarship for internships can be applied for from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for students enrolled in Germany. The short-term scholarship consists of two elements: a grant towards living costs and a travel allowance. The amount varies, but can be found on the DAAD scholarship page. ( link )

Further information on this can be found at the Max Weber Foundation at: http://www.maxweberstiftung.de/foerderung/praktika.html

To apply, please send a filled form to Dr. Thomas Würtz