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Fly's avatar

How do I find internship opportunities in the local, state, and/or national governments?

Asked by Fly (8726points) April 26th, 2011

I am fascinated by politics and intend to pursue a degree, and ultimately a career, in politics. For that reason, I am hoping to apply for internships in any of the above levels of government, specifically within the democratic party (if possible/applicable) to participate in during my upcoming senior year of high school. I live in Maryland in close proximity to Washington, DC, so an internship at the national level is not out of the question.

However, I am finding it rather difficult to ascertain resources for government internships. Being that I am still a high school student, I do not qualify for the vast majority of internship opportunities (i.e. shadowing a House representative or a Senator). I have been able to locate two possibilities at the national level thus far, but I was only able to do so after hours of Googling. I have not yet been able to find any resources for the state or local governments. My current method is obviously very inefficient and apparently mostly fruitless.

I have already spoken with my guidance counselor who told me to speak to the head of open campus programs at my school; both were clueless. Apparently the guidance office at my school has stopped communications regarding internship opportunities with all levels of government, and therefore has no resources or suggestions for a starting point. So, I am essentially on my own.

I have also already learned about the Page Program during my hours of searching, which seems like a great opportunity and is an option, but it is a bit more involved than what I am looking for.

So, to those Flutherites who managed to muddle through my very long and tedious description, any ideas on where I can start looking? What types of people and/or organizations should I be contacting? Any insight/advice from people who have participated in similar types of internships or who have worked for the political aspect of any level of government would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

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7 Answers

john65pennington's avatar

The straighest answer I can give you is the same answer I gave my son years ago.

“It’s not what you know, it’s who you know”.

This means you are going to have to become friends with some politician and get a foot in the door into internship and the Page Program. My son followed my advice and just retired as The Speaker of The House in Seattle in the State of Washington.

WestRiverrat's avatar

Contact the offices of your local politicians at all levels from city to federal.

augustlan's avatar

I contacted (via facebook) our resident young political expert, lefteh, and he had this to say:

I’ll type out a response to you later – but long story short, my best advice to her would be to get in touch with your county executive. I’ll send more thoughts later.

anartist's avatar

Are your grades and connections good enough to be a Congressional page? Are you a high school junior?
Being a girl scout/boy scout, good grades and extra-curricular activities help.
The pages live in a dorm 2 blocks from the Capitol.
Page Program from house.gov
wikipedia info
From my reading of the House page program, it seems there are similar programs for Senate pages and Supreme Court pages.
For a high school internship it can’t get any better than this. That is why standards are high.

marinelife's avatar

Contact the local Democratic Party and tell them what you are looking to do.

JLeslie's avatar

GQ.

I’m guessing any experience is going to help, because once you are on the inside you will learn a ton about how things work. This is true with any career or industry. I don’t have any specific advice where to start at the national level, but starting locally shouldn’t be as difficult I would think, and the experience will build up your resume for your ultimate goal of interning or working at the federal level. If you have trouble getting a job, you can always volunteer at first.

SmoothEmeraldOasis's avatar

Have you checked the White House website, it is chock full of helpful resources.

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