Welcome to America's Third Coast: Chicago
Think New York's skyline. California's beaches. European-style walkable neighbourhoods. Add one of the world's largest freshwater lakes, legendary food, eight professional sports teams, and a place that has starred in everything from The Bear to The Dark Knight. That's Chicago. It's one of those places that often surprises people the moment they arrive.
As the third-largest city in the United States, it combines the energy of a global metropolis with a quality of life that's difficult to find elsewhere. Iconic architecture, vibrant neighbourhoods, renowned museums, reliable public transportation and abundant green space all come together in one place.
At its heart lies Lake Michigan. Larger than Denmark, it stretches beyond the horizon and feels more like the sea than a lake. With miles of beaches just minutes from your doorstep, the lake quickly becomes part of everyday life, whether that means an early morning swim, kayaking along the skyline after work, beach volleyball with friends, sailing, or simply watching the sunset by the water. In winter, it transforms once again, bringing Christmas markets, ice skating and even the growing tradition of cold plunging.
Chicago is one of America's great sports capitals. Home to teams across the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MLS, WNBA and NWSL, there's always a game to catch. If you prefer getting active yourself, you'll find running trails, recreational leagues, fitness communities and outdoor activities throughout the year.
Perfectly located in the heart of North America, Chicago makes it easy to explore the rest of the continent, whether you're planning a weekend getaway or a longer adventure.
Now imagine calling this city home for six months. As a Marketing & Communications Intern at the Trade Council of Denmark in North America, you'll do more than gain hands-on experience in an international organization. You'll experience everyday life in one of America's most exciting cities while helping Danish companies expand across the U.S. and Canada.
About the internship
Based at the Consulate General of Denmark in Chicago, you will become an integrated part of the Trade Council's MarCom team, consisting of two advisors and two interns located across Chicago and Houston, working with strategic communication and marketing specifically within the Energy & Environment sector.
This is not a ‘watch from the sidelines’ internship. From day one, you will receive real responsibility, work directly with experienced commercial and technical advisors, and contribute to projects that have a visible impact. Throughout your internship, you'll receive continuous sparring, structured feedback, and monthly development conversations to support both your professional and personal growth.
Whether your interests lie in content creation, written content, strategic communication, branding, project management or digital marketing, we try to tailor the internship as much as possible to provide meaningful responsibility while allowing room for creativity and specialization.
What you'll be working on
As our Marketing & Communications Intern, you'll contribute to a broad range of projects, including:
- Developing and executing strategic communication initiatives across our digital platforms.
- Creating engaging content for LinkedIn and other communication channels.
- Producing marketing materials for delegations, conferences and business events.
- Supporting the production of videos and visual storytelling.
- Writing web articles, case stories and market insights related to water, sustainability and the green transition.
- Working closely with our Water Technology Advisors to identify compelling stories about Danish companies and technologies.
- Supporting project management for delegations, fact-finding missions and international events.
- Maintaining and developing the Trade Council's and the Consulate General's websites.
- Analysing communication performance and helping optimise our digital efforts.
- Assisting with ad hoc projects across the Consulate General.
By the end of your internship, you'll have built a strong portfolio of professional communication products ranging from SoMe content, web articles to videos, strategic communication initiatives, and more.
Who we're looking for
We're looking for someone who is curious, proactive, positive, and eager to learn.
You are currently enrolled in a higher education programme, preferably within journalism, communications, media, marketing or a related field, and are excited about developing your skills in a commercial and international environment.
We imagine that you:
- Take initiative and enjoy working independently.
- Have a creative mindset and an eye for visual storytelling.
- Enjoy writing or are motivated to develop your writing skills.
- Have strong organisational and project management skills.
- Are comfortable working with Microsoft Office.
- Have experience with LinkedIn and ideally Canva or Adobe InDesign.
- Speak and write both Danish and English fluently.
Most importantly, you're motivated to learn, challenge yourself and contribute to a small, ambitious team.
What you'll gain
During your internship, you'll:
- Receive continuous mentoring and professional feedback.
- Gain hands-on experience with strategic marketing and communications.
- Build a strong portfolio of real-world communication projects.
- Work closely with experienced advisors in an international environment.
- Expand your professional network across Denmark, the U.S. and Canada.
- Experience everyday life in one of North America's most exciting cities.
Practical information
Interns are responsible for their own expenses, including airfare and accommodation. The Consulate General of Denmark in Chicago provides DKK 5,000 per month towards documented rental costs.
If you have any questions about the internship, please don't hesitate to contact Marketing & Communications Advisor Simone Brochdorff Saustrup at [email protected] - no question is too small.
You are also welcome to follow our LinkedIn page to get a glimpse of our work, projects and everyday life at the Trade Council in North America.
Some MarCom internship locations receive a particularly high number of first-priority applications. To maximize your chances of securing an internship, we encourage you to carefully consider your first-priority choice and apply for multiple locations that align with your interests. Read more about our selection process here.
