Meewerkstage: Orange Corners - Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship Team

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland - RVO) is looking for an motivated intern for January 2025 to September 2025 (9 months preferred, 6-8 months negotiable) to support the Orange Corners team.

Orange Corners is in need of an enthusiastic research intern, with a strong background in qualitative research methods and experience with data analysis (i.e. literature review, coding, interviews, processing and analyzing Monitoring & Evaluation data in excel sheets). As a research intern, you will engage in advancing our ongoing research projects based on the Orange Corners Research Agenda, and support the development of the Orange Corners programme. You will be part of an ambitious team, where you will be offered a dynamic task package. As an Orange Corners research intern, you will switch between gathering data (e.g. literature reviews, interviews and surveys) analyzing and processing data (e.g. transcribing, coding or analyzing in excel) as well as contributing to high quality research. For instance, you will assist in academic research on the effects of shocks (i.e. armed conflict, or hyperinflation) on entrepreneurship support in fragile states or on the difference in training needs of entrepreneurs who experience linear vs. exponential growth. Another example is analyzing drivers and barriers for Orange Corners entrepreneurs to formally register their business. You will liaise with researchers within Orange Corners and at universities both within and outside of the Netherlands where the research projects are taking place. You will also be in contact with implementers, private partners and knowledge institutions that have a vital role in our research.

Orange Corners empowers young entrepreneurs in low-income countries to start and grow their own businesses and strengthens entrepreneurial ecosystems. Through collaborations with implementing partners and a broad coalition of private organisations, we offer comprehensive training, mentorship, invaluable networks and funding to young entrepreneurs. This support enables them to turn their innovative ideas into sustainable businesses. To ensure these businesses can thrive, we also focus on strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystems in which they operate, through a variety of projects tailored to each local context. We strive to stimulate the adoption of new rules and regulations that enable the growth of startups, to help knowledge institutes integrate entrepreneurship into their educational programmes and to empower financiers to find and fund early-stage businesses—among many other initiatives. Together, we unleash the immense power of entrepreneurship to create a more sustainable, inclusive, and prosperous society.

Research plays a pivotal role at the Orange Corners. First, Orange Corners’ research can contribute to and influence entrepreneurship theory and practice in low-income countries. Orange Corners aims to inform policy, share insights with a wider community, and contribute to academic research. The Orange Corners Research Agenda was published in 2023 and identifies four strategic development areas that guide our ongoing research efforts: entrepreneurial ecosystem development, entrepreneurship in fragile contexts, scaling businesses in low-and middle income countries, and agripreneurship. Additionally, research is crucial to enhancing the effectiveness of the Orange Corners programme, by facilitating continuous adaptation through inclusion of literature insights, and data-driven improvement. Through an extensive Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) structure, Orange Corners collects and analyzes data from participants, hubs, and ecosystem actors, enabling the enhancement of programs.

Functie-eisen

• You are enrolled at a Dutch educational institution throughout the internship period;
• You are in an advanced stage of a university study relevant to the position, such as: Innovation Sciences, International Business, Organizational Change, Business Management, Economics, Entrepreneurship, International Development Studies;
• You have affinity with qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods, experience in data analysis in excel is considered an advantage;
• You are available to work 5 days a week for a period of at least 6 months (9 months preferred). While we work largely hybrid, you are available to work at the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays;
• You have excellent written and oral communication skills in English (Dutch is a pre, but not mandatory);
• You are independent, proactive, culturally sensitive and assertive.