The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience, short IAESTE, is an international, non-political and independent organization which arranges internships abroad. It was founded in 1948 at the Imperial College of London to contribute to and promote international understanding and goodwill amongst people. Since then IAESTE has been working successfully with different organizations of the UN, e.g. with the UNESCO, ECOSOC and UNIDO.

The German Federal Republic is a member of the organization since 1950 and is represented by the German National Committee of IAESTE in the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). IAESTE is supported financially by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and The Federal Foreign Office. The IAESTE trainee exchange is approved by the Federal Employment Agency.

Since its foundation, IAESTE has organized over 350,000 internships worldwide in over 85 countries, among them 50.000 in Germany alone. In 2013 about 700 German employers participated in the IAESTE internship exchange. The main focus is on internships in engineering, sciences, agriculture and forestry. With its worldwide exchange program, IAESTE provides students an opportunity to gather international work experience.

The IAESTE internships are meant to provide an opportunity for foreign trainees to expand and to deepen the skills attained during their basic studies in the fields of industry, research or administration, according to the requirements of their future profession.