PICUM is looking for an Advocacy Trainee (Intern)

3 March – 29 August 2025 (6 months)

PICUM, the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, is a network of individuals and organisations working to ensure social justice and human rights for undocumented migrants. Grounded in principles of social justice, anti-racism and equality, PICUM works to ensure that all migrants are entitled to a dignified standard of living and respect. Bringing together the experiences and expertise of its members, PICUM generates and coordinates a humane and informed response to undocumented migrants’ realities and provides a platform to engage policy makers and the general public in the full realisation of their rights.

Based in Brussels, the PICUM secretariat leads the network’s advocacy, awareness raising, and research activities. Unlike its members working on the frontline, PICUM’s secretariat does not provide direct assistance to undocumented migrants but works to build a strong civil society network to support each other and challenge discriminatory policies and practices.

The successful candidate will play an important role in PICUM’s daily work, mainly assisting the advocacy officers and the office and events manager by following policy agendas, supporting engagement with PICUM members, and carrying out research support, administration, event organisation, and dissemination of policy and advocacy outputs. The work experience provides an opportunity to gain hands-on experience with and insights into the different facets of operating an international NGO network and working towards social and policy change in the area of human rights for undocumented migrants.

Tasks

For the period from 3 March to 29 August 2025, the candidate will contribute to PICUM’s work in the following areas:

• Assist PICUM’s Advocacy Officers with background research, contact management, drafting of papers and other written materials, attend and report on events in Brussels;

• Follow relevant EU policy agendas and deepen your expertise in at least two of PICUM’s strategic areas of work;

• Translate texts from English into other languages and from other languages into English (depending on language skills);

• Assist in producing content for PICUM’s newsletters, blogs and social media;

• Assist with organising PICUM internal and external events, including PICUM’s group sessions with members;

• Hosting some online events and taking care of the administrative tasks related to those events;

• Support in keeping updated the civiCRM database and Google Groups, handling requests made by members and/or PICUM staff;

• Taking minutes at the weekly staff meetings and external events (if requested);

• Managing the info mailbox, answering to emails/requests and keeping track of requests;

• Work flexibly alongside other members of the PICUM team to take on reasonable tasks as appropriate over and above those set out above.

Profile

Required

• University or College degree

• Knowledge of and an interest in learning more about issues concerning undocumented migrants and human rights.

• Full professional proficiency of English (oral and written)

• Strong writing skills

• Good planning and organisational skills

• Proficiency in Word and Excel

• Ability to work independently, flexibly and under tight deadlines

• Have the right to work in Belgium

Desired

• Some legal training / coursework

• Some knowledge of policy and policy-making processes

• Proficiency in languages other than English

• Experience in event organisation

• Lived experience of migration, migration procedures and/or insecure residence status, of belonging to a racialised or marginalised group

Timeframe

The place of employment is PICUM’s office in Brussels, Belgium (Rue du Congrès 37-41, 1000 Brussels). 

Although the role is office-based, we offer the possibility to telework part-time. Please note that the Belgian government has adopted mandatory teleworking policies in the past years and may do so again in the future.

The work is full time (37,5 hours / week).

Starting date: Monday, 3 March 2025 Ending date:  Friday, 29 August 2025

Terms

PICUM will provide the candidate with a Belgian contract of ‘Professional Immersion’ (‘Convention d'immersion professionnelle’) with a remuneration of € 1.035,20 per month, plus local transport costs and lunch cheques.

Selection procedure

PICUM is committed to diversity in its staffing, including based on gender, ethnic origin, disability, and lived experience of migration. We strongly encourage candidates with such diverse backgrounds to apply, and other factors being equal, give preference to such candidates.

The deadline for applications is 5 January 2025 at midnight (CET). Please send the completed application form in English to Ms. Irene Subiri Martin at the following address recruitment@picum.org, with your last name, first name and PICUM advocacy traineeship in the subject line. 

In order to promote equal opportunities in the short-listing process, we will be detaching the personal information (personal details and declaration) from the rest of your application. Please do not put your name or signature on the rest of the application form. 

All information given on the application will be treated in a confidential manner and in line with data protection legislation. 

Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by 22 January 2025. Please note that due to the large number of applications and our limited capacity, we regret that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. 

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to participate in a remote written exercise and an online interview.

Candidates will have 3 hours to complete the written exercise, which they can schedule at their convenience between 23 and 26 January 2025.

Interviews will take place on 27 or 28 January 2025.