Summer Internships in South Africa

Internships with Ikavama Labantwana Bethu

Ikavame Labantwana Bethu (ILB) is a non-profit organisation based in Cape Town, South Africa working with at-risk youth and disadvantaged families in hard-to-reach communities.

ILB offers four-week internships to continuing Goldsmiths students in:

• Education and Youth Development 
• Mental Health and Nutrition 
• Social Work 
• Community Outreach and Engagement 

Find more information about the types of internships available.

These internships are four-weeks long. The start and end dates can be chosen by you to allow flexibility and to make this opportunity possible around your schedule. The internship must fall between 31 May 2025 and 31 August 2025.

These internships are an exciting and unique opportunity to gain practical experience assisting the most vulnerable youth in real time while working with trained staff who will provide support every step of the way.

Interns will live in secure accommodation with student safety being of utmost importance to ILB. Students will also have the opportunity to take part in a small tour of Cape Town including a garden route tour as well as fun activities like hiking and surfing, etc. Working hours are Monday-Friday 9-5 with weekends free to explore.

Who can apply?

Applications are open to all current undergraduate and postgraduate students (including those completing their degree in June 2025).

ILB has hosted many interns in the past that have been involved in the delivery of education and youth development programmes, as well as served as facilitators in many local school programmes. 

ILB is looking for interns who:

• Are willing to work in the most challenging communities under the support and supervision of our staff
• Possess good communication and leadership skills
• Flexible and hard-working
• Sensitive and compassionate
• Innovative and self-driven
• Adaptive

Find specific intern profiles for each internship.

How to apply

This will be a strict deadline to be fair to all applicants. Applications will be collated after the deadline and considered together, they will not be considered on a first come first served basis. 

You may only apply to one internship

Only the strongest applicants will be considered. 

In your application, you should demonstrate:

• How you meet ILB’s desired intern criteria
• Why you have chosen the internship you are applying for
• What skills and experience you will bring, as well as what you hope to gain from the internship
• Your motivation to travel and intern in South Africa

Successful students will be informed directly by the Global Opportunities team and will later take part in onboarding activities organised by ILB.

If you have any questions about your application, please email goabroad (@gold.ac.uk)

Funding information

This internship is unpaid, however application and programme fees will be waived for Goldsmiths applicants.

Interns will receive a grant of £527 for the duration of their placement which can be used to cover the costs of accommodation, travel and living costs (based on 31 days in South Africa).

If you meet Turing Widening Access criteria the grant will be £651 (plus a £905 travel grant).

 

Accommodation options

Accommodation in Observatory, Cape Town is R10,000 (approx £436) per month. This includes a queen bed with en-suite.

Accommodation in Tarkastad, in the Eastern Cape, is around R7,000 (approx £300) per month.

All options are self-catering.

About Tarkastad

Tarkastad is a farming village in the Eastern Cape, where ILB are constructing a state-of-the-art centre focused on educational and skills development programs with accommodation.

This option is ideal for those seeking a quieter, more relaxed environment surrounded by mountains, and who are interested in contributing to the development of our educational centre.

More about ILB

ILB's vision is to provide young people with the support to break free from the cycle of poverty and violence to reach their full potential.

ILB does this by addressing educational gaps, violence, and skills shortages through educational programmes, personal development, and skills training.

Through its skills development programmes, ILB reaches 225 unemployed young people a year, and through its community development work, has created more than 600 employment opportunities around Cape Town and Tarkastad in the Eastern Cape.

Despite operating in the most severely impacted communities, ILB is founded on the principle that resilience is everything.

For more information on the organisation, please visit ikamvalabantwana.org/.