Design Intern at Kiva.org

About Kiva

Kiva is the world’s first and largest crowdfunding platform for social good. We run an online marketplace (www.kiva.org) for crowdfunded microloans that serves the financially excluded. Our organization combines the culture and technological passion of an internet start-up with the compassion and empathy of a non-profit to expand financial access at global scale. We aim to drive social impact and enable opportunity while providing a borrower-to-lender connection: “Loans that change lives.”  

Our mission is to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive.  In just 17 years, we have raised more than $1.8 billion in loan capital for 4.9+ million borrowers in over 90 countries. Our lenders fund over $10 million in loans every month. Headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in Portland, New York City, Nairobi, and Bangkok, Kiva's team has 100+ employees and 500+ volunteers worldwide. 

Internship Program

Since its founding, volunteerism has been an integral part of Kiva's foundation and success. As a Kiva Intern, you will contribute your passion, drive, ideas and expertise to expanding our reach and impact while taking on immediate and significant responsibilities within your team. In addition to learning on the job, you'll partake in a variety of educational, social, and professional development workshops and events that will accelerate your professional growth while learning about Kiva and the non-profit, technology, and microfinance sectors. 

Through this volunteer internship, we aim to provide a high caliber learning experience. With the completion of our internship program, you will take away many in-demand job skills. Additionally, all Kiva interns will gain exposure to foundational microfinance concepts and ongoing professional development tailored to your career goals. This position will also put you in contact with a wide array of employees around the world, giving you a jump start on networking opportunities.

Kiva is currently recruiting for our January 2023 through July 2023 internship class. 

This Kiva Internship is a 6-month, part-time (32 hours per week), United States-based, remote volunteer position. Please make sure you have the availability to commit for the entire internship period before submitting an application.

Placement Process

During recruitment, we will evaluate your application and interests to match you to a specific team that will leverage your talents while providing you with an opportunity to develop and grow, this may be the team that you apply to or a similar intern role on a different team.

Although Kiva Interns range in age, work experience, and education backgrounds, a common theme among our participants is a "can do" attitude as well as a desire and willingness to contribute right away

Our team

Joining Kiva’s Design Team, you’ll be reporting to the Head of Design. Our Product Design team has worked on experiences for some of the biggest brands in the world, including Apple, Google, and Mastercard. Your work at Kiva will enable people across the world to do good and help each other. This role requires a high level of collaboration with our Product Management and Engineering teams. We’re looking for curious, thoughtful, collaborative people who want to live their values.

Your role

We’re looking for an incredible and talented Product Design Intern with a focus on UX design and design research. Each day will be super collaborative, you’ll work with an international team of Kivans, building prototypes and experiments for millions of users, running studies with our audience, and wireframing user experience flows.

Primary Responsibilities (dependent on design skill-set)

• Partner with product managers, engineers, and other stakeholders to design user experiences from conception to launch
• Work directly on Kiva’s products and initiatives, such as Kiva.org, to make the experience better for our global audience of users

Qualifications

• Must be 21 years of age or older by January 17th, 2023
• Able to commit to the full 6-months term
• A strong sense of strategic thinking, concept development and design aesthetic
• Comfortable working on Mac OS platform
• Proficiency working with standard design software such as Adobe Creative Suite, Figma
• Able keep track of their projects from handoff to completion
• Proactive, able to meet deadlines, and able to explain design decisions to non-designers.
• Exceptional communicator, and a knack for communicating design rationale
• Thrives in an iterative process that involves listening, adapting, moving fast, talking with users, incorporating feedback, and constantly collaborating

Perks:

• Professional development and skills workshops
• Access to Kiva’s network of Kiva Fellowship and Internship Alumni
• Optional participation in Kiva’s Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and social activities such as happy hours and coffee chats  
• References are gladly given for successful participants

Kiva's Internship is a part-time volunteer position; however, to help offset some expenses, Kiva will provide a modest stipend of $800 a month (before taxes) to its volunteers. Please note that the stipend is considered taxable income and we expect interns to do their own research as to how this may affect their personal/tax implications.

The weekly time commitment for a Kiva Internship is 32 hours per week, from January 17th, 2023 - July 31st, 2023. Please make sure you have the availability to commit for the entire internship period before submitting an application.

A diverse and inclusive workplace where we learn from each other is an integral part of Kiva's culture.  We actively welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities, and perspectives. We are an equal opportunity employer and a great place to work. Join us and help us achieve our mission!