RPA Ad Academy- Summer 2026 - All Departments (Except Art Direction and Copywriting)

We’re RPA: an independent advertising agency that puts People First. It’s a unique philosophy for a different kind of agency: where we aspire to create work that truly matters to people, for brands that respect and value people, with a team we empower and treat like people. And we do it all in the heart of sunny Santa Monica, California.  

RPA is seeking talented interns to join our "Ad Academy" Summer Internship Program.

At RPA, we believe an internship should be more than a resume filler; it should be a place to set the course of your career. Our Industry Leading Internship Program embodies this very sentiment. You’ll get to experience firsthand the bold, creative, and collaborative culture that’s made RPA one of AdAge’s "Best Places to Work.” You get to do real work on real brands, as part of the largest advertising internship program in Los Angeles.

We’re not like other agencies. We believe we can only do our biggest thinking and create our most inspiring work when we put People First. This means valuing and empowering our people to do their best and inspiring them to create ideas and experiences that respect people.

If you’re ready to work with awesome people in a place where people are encouraged to swing big, act bold, and be their most awesome selves, we want to meet you. Because we’re nothing without our people, and everything because of you.

RPA's "Ad Academy" Program Overview:

Welcome to the RPA Ad Academy- a Summer internship program focused on growth, networking, and immersing yourself in everything the Advertising industry has to offer. 

Internship programs nowadays are all the same: you apply with a resume, you talk to a recruiter and then the next thing you know you’re in a final round and it’s over. Not the best experience, right?

That’s why we’re changing the way people can apply to our internship program, by reimagining the experience and focusing on 3 key pillars - connection, preparation, and education. From now on, candidates will be invited to tell us more about themselves via a virtual phone screen, followed by a second round where you’ll get to learn more about RPA, meet some of our Associates, and fine tune your skills through an RPA Prep Bootcamp. We’ll help you prepare a bio video for teams to review before meeting you, teach you how to interview to the best of your ability, help you network with some RPA’ers, and get some personal 1:1 time with one of our passionate recruiters. 

Then, after we prepare you to do your best, we’ll have you connect with up to 2 teams who are actively searching for a talented intern to join their ranks for the Summer 2026 internship term.

So what are you waiting for? Shoot your shot and begin your new Advertising Adventure at an agency that is known for developing the best early career talent in the industry.

Important Details:

When:  Monday, June 8th - Friday, August 28th, 2026.
Where: Santa Monica, HQ - You must be located in LA county for the duration of the internship, and you are expected to come in two times a week. Your recruiter will share more details. 
Duration:  Ability to dedicate a full-time schedule of 35 hours/week - Monday – Friday, 9 am-5 pm PST.
Application deadline: We will keep the application open until we receive 300 completed phone screen applications. 

Available Departments:

• Brand Strategy 
• Marketing Intelligence (Web Analytics) 
• Media (Strategy, Digital/Platform Investment, National Video Investment)
• CX Product & AI Strategy
• Account Management
• Technology

Pay:

$18.00/hour - Non-Negotiable

Recruitment Timeline:

• You can apply to RPA’s Summer program starting Monday, March 2nd. No resume is required, just some basic information.
• To be eligible for the program, you must be a rising senior (est. graduation date is 2027), or graduated. 
• Virtual Phone Interviews will begin March 3rd (rolling basis as you apply), and will stop when we receive 300 qualified applicants to review for the program.
• 40 finalists will be selected for the Prep Bootcamp and to meet with our associates in the final round. 
• Ahead of the virtual phone screen, candidates should focus on preparing stories centered around Emotional Intelligence, Curiosity, Accountability, Collaboration, and Adaptability.
• Finalists will be notified if they’ve made it to the preparation round no later than Friday, March 13th.
• The Preparation Bootcamp sessions will take place between March 17th and March 24th. This stage will be focused on preparation, education, and connection. We will host and conduct workshops, panels, and 1:1 chats with our talented recruiting team, doing our best to ensure you are ready to make your best first impression.
• Final round interviews will happen between April 2nd and April 10th, via virtual video meeting calls through Microsoft Teams.
• Decisions will be communicated via email or phone call the week of April 13th. Finalists who are selected will be given 24 hours to decide on their offer. Finalists who aren’t selected will be given a timeframe to request feedback in May 2026 should it be agreed upon by the agency.

These deadlines are subject to change, so we ask for your patience and understanding as we sort through our applications.

A note from our recruiters:

Hello! It's Romy here from the People Team at RPA. I know that applying to an internship can already be overwhelming, and adding a virtual phone screen might spike that anxiety even more. Please know that our team has gone through this very process, and spent months tweaking our tool (Talent Llama) to ensure you get the most fair and humane experience with us. We brought this tool on to help maximize our face-to-face time with you and to help give you an initial chance to shoot your shot. Trust yourself and your experience, take deep breaths, and talk to the virtual tool like you would to an interviewer! You've got this. 

Good luck :)

The RPA People Team