Calling All Snorri and Snorri Plus Alumni!
Have you been looking for a way to reconnect with Iceland since your Snorri experience?
Have you longed for an opportunity to return to Iceland and contribute to keeping the cultural ties alive between Iceland and North America?!
Have you longed for an opportunity to return to Iceland and contribute to keeping the cultural ties alive between Iceland and North America?!
Applications for the 2025 Snorri Alumni Internship are now closed!
Applications for summer 2026 will open winter 2025
Applications for summer 2026 will open winter 2025
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"The experience has been life changing. I have come home with a different attitude. I have adopted the Icelandic attitude of 'þetta reddast'.”
Donna Faye Toro
Escondido, California (Snorri Plus 2015 and Intern 2017) |
"The beauty of Hofsós and the experience I had working at the Icelandic Emigration Center is something I will never forget. It was such a unique and wonderful way to spend a summer."
Mallory Swanson
St. Paul, Minnesota (Snorri 2011 and Intern 2016) |
"I couldn't have asked for a better experience. Even with some challenges from poor weather and the isolation of being in such a small village, it was an experience I wouldn't trade for anything."
David Johnson
Brownsville, Indiana (Snorri Plus 2011 and Intern 2024) |
The Icelandic Emigration Center is a place dedicated to commemorating the Icelanders who emigrated to the Americas between 1850 and 1920. The Center also promotes connections between their descendants and the people of Iceland. It is located in the picturesque village of Hofsós on the shores of Skagafjörður in North Iceland. Every Snorri participant has visited Hofsós as part of their Snorri experience.
Following successful projects every year starting in 2015, two interns – one from the US and one from Canada – will again be invited to spend up to 12 weeks in Iceland this summer. The majority of the time will be spent in Hofsós, where the interns will be given free accommodation and will help the Emigration Center's team welcome guests from around the world. In addition, the interns will work on projects developed in conjunction with the US or Canadian Embassy to help promote the strong cultural bonds between Iceland, Canada, and the United States. At the beginning and end of the trip, the interns will spend a couple days in Reykjavík, during which time they will stay with host families affiliated with INL-Iceland. In addition, if they spend at least five weeks volunteering, they will be offered a week off to discover other parts of Iceland, such as Akureyri and the Mývatn area, Vík and Jökulsárlón or Bifröst and Þingvellir.
Do you have what it takes to be a Snorri Alumni Intern?
The Snorri Alumni Internship is a very different experience than Snorri or Snorri Plus. Interns are responsible for their own grocery shopping and meals and will have limited entertainment and transportation options. They need to be comfortable with small, rural settings and content spending time in nature and in their own company. The ideal intern works well as part of a team but can also work independently and take initiative. They are creative, hard-working, and adaptable. A few more things it might be good to know:
If you think you would make a good intern, applications for 2026 will open winter 2025. Please fill out the application as thoroughly and thoughtfully as possible. Applicants who pass the first round of selection will be invited to a video chat. A final decision will be made in early February.
Details:
To read our full cancellation policy for the Snorri Alumni Internship, click here.
Following successful projects every year starting in 2015, two interns – one from the US and one from Canada – will again be invited to spend up to 12 weeks in Iceland this summer. The majority of the time will be spent in Hofsós, where the interns will be given free accommodation and will help the Emigration Center's team welcome guests from around the world. In addition, the interns will work on projects developed in conjunction with the US or Canadian Embassy to help promote the strong cultural bonds between Iceland, Canada, and the United States. At the beginning and end of the trip, the interns will spend a couple days in Reykjavík, during which time they will stay with host families affiliated with INL-Iceland. In addition, if they spend at least five weeks volunteering, they will be offered a week off to discover other parts of Iceland, such as Akureyri and the Mývatn area, Vík and Jökulsárlón or Bifröst and Þingvellir.
Do you have what it takes to be a Snorri Alumni Intern?
The Snorri Alumni Internship is a very different experience than Snorri or Snorri Plus. Interns are responsible for their own grocery shopping and meals and will have limited entertainment and transportation options. They need to be comfortable with small, rural settings and content spending time in nature and in their own company. The ideal intern works well as part of a team but can also work independently and take initiative. They are creative, hard-working, and adaptable. A few more things it might be good to know:
- Interns will generally volunteer at the museum 7 hours a day, 6 days a week, with a daily half-hour lunch break.
- Interns who volunteer a minimum of five weeks total will also be given the option to take a week off during the internship and travel around Iceland (at their own expense).
- Daily tasks will include greeting visitors, selling tickets and items in the gift shop, helping visitors with genealogy research, and doing some light cleaning.
- The Emigration Center utilizes the Icelandic Roots database to help visitors discover information about their family history. Prior familiarity with the database is a plus but not a requirement. If you have not used the database before, you will be expected to undergo training so you can confidently help visitors to the Emigration Center.
If you think you would make a good intern, applications for 2026 will open winter 2025. Please fill out the application as thoroughly and thoughtfully as possible. Applicants who pass the first round of selection will be invited to a video chat. A final decision will be made in early February.
Details:
- Airfare to Iceland from selected gateway cities will be generously donated by Icelandair (intern is responsible for any and all costs associated with getting to the gateway city of their choice)
- Domestic travel costs will be covered by INL-Iceland (i.e. to and from airport and to and from Hofsós).
- Accommodation and food during the welcome and farewell stays in Reykjavík (from 2-7 days each time) will be provided by INL host families. Estimated arrival in Iceland would be between June 7-15. Your time in Iceland is flexible and can last from a minimum of 6 weeks up to 12 weeks.
- Accommodation in Hofsós will be generously provided by the Icelandic Emigration Center. Interns will generally stay in Brimnes, former home of celebrated Icelandic-American author Bill Holm. Unless their dates do not overlap at all, interns will share the home; they will have separate bedrooms but will share all common spaces. They will be responsible for their own food and personal expenses. However...
- Each volunteer will receive a stipend to assist with living expenses. This can also be put toward costs incurred during their week off.
- Volunteers are responsible for obtaining their own medical insurance to cover them for the duration of the internship.
- Please note that new regulations requiring North Americans to apply for an ETIAS visa waiver to visit countries in the Schengen Area (including Iceland) are slated to go into effect in 2025. Click here to learn more. Once ETIAS has been introduced, Snorri Alumni Interns will be responsible for applying for the visa waiver and covering any and all fees related to it.
To read our full cancellation policy for the Snorri Alumni Internship, click here.
