Information for Internship Employers

Overview of Undergraduate Internship
Would you like to have an upper year university student work on projects that otherwise might not get completed? Need additional research and analysis skills? Interested in identifying potential employees? The Department of Political Science coordinates internship programs for strong students who work with a governmental or non-governmental organization. It’s a great chance to try out an employment field, to cultivate industry contacts, to act as a mentor and to further develop their skill sets.

Benefits to Employers

  • Access to junior professional-level workers who generally work with little supervision.
  • Achieve progress on one or more projects, such as research and analysis work.
  • Contribute to a dynamic workplace culture.
  • Opportunity to contribute to a young person’s knowledge and influence his/her career path.

During the course students follow a syllabus which includes directions for reflective and concise writing projects. You may also wish to refer to some of the feedback we have received from employers and a list of employers who have previously hosted political science interns.

Undergraduate Placements (upper-year Bachelor’s level)
Undergraduate placements are for 12 weeks at eight hours per week, except in the Intersession semester (May to June) which involves working 16 hours a week in a compressed period; in both cases there is a commitment to a minimum of 96 total hours. Often employers opt to offer a stipend or other remuneration, however this is not required. Students must have completed a minimum B (70%) average and have third-year standing.

Timeline

  1. Student completes questionnaire and registers for course: Fall - July; Winter - November; Spring - March
  2. Internship coordinator and employer chat about possibly placement option: Fall - by August; Winter - by December; Spring - by April
  3. Employer receives resume and interviews student; student and employer discuss and sign agreement: Fall - late August/early September; Winter - late December/early January; Spring - April
  4. Internship placement starts; student maintains work log: Fall - early/mid-September; Winter - early/mid-January; Spring - early May
  5. Placement ends and grade is calculated using evaluation form: Fall - late November/early December; Winter - late March/early April; Spring - mid-June

Interested in Setting up a Placement? Here’s What to Do
Contact the Instructor of Political Science 4600. We’ll need a brief description of your research project and the location (e.g., building) where the work is to be performed. We’ll also need to know when you will be ready for students to begin work (the schedule provided above offers a guide for the intake of students). We look forward to hearing from you!