Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade
Vaka & Aorere Internship Opportunities (Nov 2025)
Wellington
Opportunity details
- Internship, Clerkship or Placement
- NZD 46112 / Year
- 4-10 vacancies
- Apply by 7 Aug 2025
- Start date 15 Nov 2025 - 19 Dec 2025
- Curious about global challenges and how you can make a difference for Aotearoa’s place in the world?
- Let us introduce you to the world of foreign policy and a career in diplomacy
- 11-week paid internship for Māori & Pasifika students - Wellington based
As an Aorere or Vaka intern, you will gain valuable work experience and development opportunities, as well as an insight into the world of foreign policy and diplomacy. The internship is an excellent way to prepare for a graduate role with MFAT, or the wider public service.
You may find yourself working on areas such as advising the government on our relations with other countries, climate change and the environment, development and humanitarian activities, the UN and human rights, trade negotiations or international security & arms control. These are all kaupapa which are important to the safety and prosperity of Aotearoa whānui including Te Iwi Māori and Pasifika.
Your internship will include:
- A paid internship over summer within one of our foreign policy teams
- A research project and opportunity to present your findings
- A workshop series designed to prepare you for a graduate role
- Opportunities to use, share and further develop your mātauranga Māori skills
- Networking opportunities
- Support and guidance from a mentor
- A great group of other interns to learn with!
- Travel assistance will be provided for interns outside of the Wellington region.
MFAT is passionate about growing a diverse talent pipeline and the Aorere and Vaka internships are part of MFAT’s efforts to provide opportunities to Māori and Pasifika students and young professionals to help ensure that our Foreign Ministry and its advice reflects the full diversity of Aotearoa.
We encourage you to apply if you are:
- Studying towards a minimum of a Bachelor’s level qualification – any discipline (doesn’t have to be law,
economics, or politics, although those fields are very welcome). - Within your last year or two of study.
- Willing and able to be based in Wellington (we’ll fly
you to Wellington if you’re based elsewhere in Aotearoa). - Able to show us your group participation skills (whether they come from cultural, community, volunteer,
church, sports-based or any other activities) - A New Zealand citizen, and of Māori descent.
- Able to gain and maintain an appropriate security clearance (Use this online tool to self-check your
eligibility for a security clearance. Please note that this tool is not part of the formal security clearance
process)
So, whether you have been a part of university clubs or a volunteer within your community or church or hard at
work to support whānau, these are all relevant experiences! So make sure you apply!
Hiring criteria
- No experience required
- New Zealand Citizen +more
- Business & Management +more
- Associate Degree or higher
Reviews
Note taking, email correspondence, attending meetings, assessing policy and internation standards for trade.
Day to day responsibilities is heavy on reporting and writing responses to OIA's and Ministerial. Could do with more work specific on briefings etc.
I find my day-to-day responsibilities to be quite light and oftentimes find myself bored. I would prefer to be a lot busier
About the employer
Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade
3.8
1,000 - 50,000 employees
Government & Public Service
Let MFAT introduce you to the world of policy, and we'll show you how you can make a difference for Aotearoa's place in the world.
Pros and cons of working at Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade
Pros
The ability to have a tangible impact on the world and for people, for example helping partner countries reduce their carbon emissions and develop their renewable energy sector.
The diversity and pace of work. Every day is different and the work changes quickly. It makes it difficult to be bored.
The team culture and rewarding work.
Plenty of opportunity to progress career with a range of amazing opportunities and the ministry shows a commitment to expanding our knowledge and experiences to make us better all-round foreign policy officers.
We had an 8-week induction program, where we learnt core writing skills, completed foundational courses about key topics, and learnt the systems we use on a day-to-day basis.
Cons
It generally takes 4-6 years to go on posting.
The pressure and demands of the work. Often longer hours are needed to get the work done.
There is a strong culture of overwork.
Lack of social connectedness in the workplace, very hard to start work here with so much institutional knowledge.
The level of support from your team varies throughout the ministry.