Olivia
How do I find good internships for a political science major in my area?
I'm not able to travel to our state capital or DC but am interested in finding an internship that will give me some experience relevant to a political science major.
#intership
#politicalsciencemajor
3 answers
Azka Iqbal
Azka’s Answer
You can look for local candidates who are running for office and ask them if they take interns. You can also volunteer to help them with their campaign. They are always looking for people to help and often have connections to other people in the political science field which can help you find more internships.
Azka recommends the following next steps:
Andrew Alban
Andrew’s Answer
I think a great potential opportunity is to apply for an internship with the district offices of your federal and state representatives. That way, the travel may potentially be more manageable. You will be gaining just as relevant experience as you would in DC or your state capital. It will allow you to get involved in the local politics of your community, as those offices field a lot of calls and do case work for constituents such as helping to connect them with government services. Best of luck!
Christine Balarezo, Ph.D.
Christine’s Answer
Hi Olivia,
First, what aspect of political science interests you? This is such a broad field, and this will help determine which internships are in line with your academic and career goals. For example, if you love everything about voting, running for office, the Presidency or Congress, or American Politics in general, volunteering as an intern on a local campaign would be great. If you find human rights to be more your thing, what issue sparks the most interest? Women's rights? Children's? Those that were imprisoned or accused of a crime they didn't commit? Again, the point here is to narrow down your interests, which will making finding an internship easier, and also allow you to get more out of it.
Second, I see you are in Orange, CA. How far are you able/willing to drive to do your internship? You have some bigger cities around you like Los Angeles and Anaheim. That would help expand your search. Think about the radius (how many miles you're willing to travel) to limit your search as well.
Third, do a combo of research to locate good internship opportunities for you. As a student, look at your school first. Look at your department (where major is), school, and university or on-campus resources and ideas. Ask professors, career/internship/study abroad office. Ask other students, particularly upperclassmen or graduate students. Also do Google searches. Just Google "internships near me" or "internships in [insert city name]" or "political science internships near me" or the specific niche you're interested. VolunteerMatch and Idealist.org are some good places to located organizations that may offer internship opportunities, and you can search based on different criteria (including category, like politics, senior citizens, children, etc.).
Wising you the best of luck!
Christine recommends the following next steps: