The Heritage Foundation - Young Leaders Program (summer 2025)

The Young Leaders Program promotes the mission of The Heritage Foundation to the next generation by developing and implementing outreach to younger audiences.

We offer young conservatives from around the country Washington, DC’s best internship program. Through our Young Leaders Program Facebook Page and our weekly newsletter, young conservatives can interact with Heritage policy experts on their campuses. For those visiting Washington, the Young Leaders Program would be happy to host a briefing about Heritage and policy issues that interest your group, two weeks minimum notice is preferred.

Meet the YLP Team:

Helena Ramirez Richardson, Director
Colleen Harmon, Program Manager

The Young Leaders Program handles the Heritage internship, campus outreach, young professional outreach, and the growing alumni network of the Heritage internship! The Heritage Foundation’s research materials have proved to be an invaluable resource for students, faculty, and organizations to utilize in their classrooms and educational programs. The reference materials are written to provide the most updated and reliable research, and to also to be explanatory, educational, and easily accessible.

The Heritage Foundation consists of four different institutes:

• The Institute for Constitutional Government
• The Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy
• The Institute for Economic Freedom
• The Institute of for Family, Community, and Opportunity

In addition to the practical experience interns acquire, intern programming offers educational and skill enhancing seminars. Interns regularly attend events where they can meet and talk with the nation's leading policy-makers, interns are establishing friendships and contacts that will last a lifetime.

Programming includes:

• A weekly series on First Principles.
• Weekly briefings with Heritage policy experts on foreign and domestic policy issues.
• Lectures and seminars held at Heritage hearing from prominent conservative leaders, authors, and policymakers.
• Practical skills workshops teaching how to research, op-eds writing, blogging, etiquette, skill building workshops, resume writing, and networking.
• Reading groups and discussions.
• Off-site tours including the Pentagon, Capitol, and Mount Vernon.

Departments and Intern Roles
Choose a department and find the right fit for your internship!

• PRESIDENT'S OFFICE
• COMMUNICATIONS
• DEVELOPMENT/FUNDRAISING 
• RESEARCH
• OPERATIONS
• POLICY PROMOTION & OUTREACH