Creative Intern, Art Direction

We are in relentless pursuit of an equitable and inspiring workplace that is respectful of all, reflects and represents the world in which we live, and fosters trust, collaboration and belonging. Consistent with this approach, we hire the best qualified candidates for all positions.

Edelman is seeking an early career Art Director for a 10-week summer internship program, beginning Monday, June 8 and ending Friday, August 14. In order to be considered, you must be a current senior, post-graduate student, or recent graduate. 

Applications without a portfolio will not be considered.

This intern will have the opportunity to work across our Brand portfolio of clients with leadership and support from Edelman’s award-winning Creative teams. Our growing creative teams are the masterminds behind some of the world’s most talked about work. Whether we're teaming up with RZA to replace an outdated and racist ice cream jingle, fighting for intersectional environmental justice with TAZO Tea, or creating a hotel for the world's most devoted Taco Bell fans, the work we create is designed to capture attention and get people talking. It’s not enough to be culturally relevant—our briefs demand that we change culture around us.  At Edelman, our creative teams conceptualize Earned-first ideas, which will be a foundational part of the ideation process. 

While interning with us, you will be assigned real client projects, tackling briefs alongside our dynamic group of Creative Directors, Designers, Copywriters and more. As part of the program, Interns will be assigned 1-2 major projects on key clients, coupled with ancillary projects based on bandwidth to give you the most informative and diverse experience. To support your creative development, each intern will be paired with craft-specific mentors and managers. The experience will be integrated – Interns will get to know and learn the process and integrated approach with strategy, creative, production and project management, and they will interface with client leads, account management and much more.   

This role is hybrid, and interns will be onsite 3 days/week at our office location in: Chicago. Interns are paid $22/hour and are expected to work a full-time schedule (40 hours/week).  

To be considered, please submit an application & portfolio by April 24, 2026.

Responsibilities

• Concept & execute art direction, design, &/or copy for a wide range of clients & marketing outputs – ranging from integrated campaigns to real-time social content, and everything in between. 

• Successfully communicate creative ideas, their rationale, and the specifics of the solutions    

• Collaborate with agency team members from creative, account, production, technology, PR, strategy, planning and analytics to produce smart, powerful work 

Qualifications

• Fluent in internet and social language/trends. Should be comfortable executing everything from an organic TikTok campaign to a stunt that goes viral on Reddit.   

• Demonstrated ability to concept across a variety of mediums: social, digital, print, TV, audio, experiential, and OOH.

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

• Ability to prioritize and manage work, adhering to critical project timelines in a fast-paced environment. 

For Art Direction:

• Strong design sensibility with proficiency in Adobe Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign)  

• The ability to ideate and craft conceptual creative campaign and social concepts from inception to execution 

• An understanding of the industry, spanning branding, advertising and marketing 

• Effectively communicate ideas with strong presentation skills 

• Knowledge and experimentation with Generative AI is required (Midjourney, Nano Banano, Firefly, etc)

Additional Information:

• Duration: June 8 – August 14, 2026.

• In order to be considered, you must be a current senior, post-graduate student, or recent graduate.

• This role is hybrid, interns will be onsite 3 days/week at our Chicago office.

• Interns are paid $22/hour and are expected to work a full-time schedule (40 hours/week).

• Edelman does not provide any form of housing reimbursement  

• Only students who are authorized to work in the United States will be considered

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An employee’s pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, travel requirements, revenue-based metrics, any contractual agreements, and business or organizational needs. The range listed is just one component of DJEH’s total compensation package for employees. Other rewards may include annual bonuses, a Paid Time Off policy, and region-specific benefits.

DJEH offers a wide range of benefits: medical and dental insurance, vision, 401K, life insurance, disability insurance, paid time off, travel assistance and wellness programing.

DJEH is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and believes in diversity, equity, and inclusion. We seek applications from all qualified candidates without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, physical or mental disability, military and veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law. If you require a reasonable accommodation in any part of the employment process, please let us know.