Research Intern Philanthropy Fundraising

Join MSF OCG as a Research Intern Philanthropy Fundraising!

We are looking for passionate candidates ready to contribute to our humanitarian mission.

Below, you will find the job details and the qualifications we are looking for.

This internship is part of an academic training program, a professional training program, or a socio-professional integration program, and must comply with the conditions set by the Employment Market Supervisory Council (CSME). The duration of the internship, as defined by the tripartite agreement, is 6 to 12 months at 100%

Inclusivity and Diversity at MSF

Do your qualifications and experience not exactly match all requirements of the job?

At MSF OCG, we are committed to an inclusive culture that supports and amplifies the diverse voices of our staff members. We strive to create workplaces where teams of people with diverse backgrounds, characteristics, perspectives, ideas and experiences work together to advance MSF’s social mission and create better outcomes for our patients and the communities we work with.

We understand that some people may hesitate to apply for employment if they don’t meet all listed job requirements. Research shows that this is especially true for women. If you believe your profile is a good match for this position, we invite you to apply even if you don’t fulfil every listed qualification.

We encourage applications from individuals of all genders, ages, sexual orientations, ethnicities, background, religions, beliefs, ability status, and all other diversity characteristics.

MSF does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment. All selected candidates will undergo reference checks.

Context & mission

Médecins Sans Frontières is an independent, international medical and humanitarian organization that provides care to people in need, people affected by natural or man-made disasters, and victims of armed conflict, without discrimination and without regard to race, religion, creed or political affiliation (MSF Charter).

Médecins Sans Frontières is a medical humanitarian organisation founded in 1971 by doctors and journalists. The Swiss section was founded in Geneva in 1981. MSF provides medical assistance to populations whose lives are threatened by armed conflict, epidemics, natural disasters or exclusion from healthcare. More than 97% of MSF’s funding comes from the generosity of its private donors.

The Philanthropy Unit is one of the seven business units of the Communication and Fundraising Department. With a staff of 25, it raised ca. CHF 100 million last year from individuals, foundations, companies and cantons/municipalities. To cover the Swiss market geographically, we are divided between an office at the Geneva headquarters and an office in Zurich.

As a Research Intern, you will support the Philanthropy Unit in various aspects. You will be supervised by the Prospect Researcher, who is responsible for prospect research, due diligence, and data analysis.

You will contribute to generating funding for the MSF social mission through prospect research, due diligence, and analysis, under the guidance of the the Prospect Researcher.

The general objective is to get to know philanthropy fundraising, prospect research, and due diligence.

The skills to develop are risk assessment of large donations to MFS, donor research in the Swiss and Liechtenstein fundraising market.

The Prospect Researcher supervises, with weekly one on one meetings and oral feedback.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Perform prospect research on potential and current major donors (private individuals, foundations, companies). Base the research on a combination of information from publicly available sources, our donor database, available financial records and other indicators.
• Establish donor profiles based on the analysis of accumulated information on philanthropy priorities, capacity, giving propensity and affinity to MSF and our life-saving mission.
• Conduct due diligence to ensure compliance with MSF’s gift acceptance policy
• Collaborate with the Prospect Researcher in developing a data analysis strategy
• Provide system support to the Philanthropy Advisors
• Work with the Prospect Researcher and other members of the Philanthropy Unit on other projects and tasks if necessary
• Depending on the candidate’s skill-set, knowledge, and learning and development objectives, contribute to the success of the team through data analysis task and other activities

Your profile

• Have a tripartite internship agreement
• Excellent research and writing skills
• Good knowledge of the Swiss social and economic landscape
• Knowledge of Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM and data analysis is an asset
• Detailed, accurate, and structured working style
• Service mentality
• Respectful curiosity
• Discretion
• Interest in humanitarian aid
• Excellent research skills and the ability to juxtapose and synthesise findings
• Structured and clear writing
• Experience with CRM software and data analysis (Power BI, SQL) is considered an advantage.
• Previous working experience (internship or other) is considered an advantage.
• English, French, and German are the working languages at MSF Switzerland. For the position advertised, fluency in English and good passive knowledge of French and German are required. Knowledge of Italian is considered an advantage.
• Excellent ability to work in a multicultural environment and to demonstrate commitment and support for diversity, gender-responsive, inclusive, and non-discriminatory behaviour and attitudes.

Terms of employment

• A tripartite internship agreement is mandatory
• 6 to 9 months, according to internship agreement
• Full time (40h/week)
• Based in Geneva, Switzerland
• Start date : 4th of August 2026
• Gross monthly remuneration 2’000.- CHF

How to apply

Candidates are invited to submit their application exclusively through our recruitment platform, following these guidelines:

• CV (maximum 2 pages)
• Cover letter (maximum 1 page)
• Documents must be submitted in either English or French.

The application deadline is June 28th, 2026.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy earlier if we receive a sufficient number of quality applications.

APPLY HERE

All applications will be treated confidentially.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Please note that we do not wish to use the services of recruitment or placement agencies.