#GovernmentJobs

Tag: #GovernmentJobs

Future Leaders in Public Service Internship Program

Did you know that less than 7% of the full-time federal workforce is under 30? The government is looking to change that. They’re prioritizing paid internships that last 10-12 weeks. These internships are a great way to gain work experience, expand your professional network, and understand the impact of public service.

The program is managed by the Partnership for Public Service and it’s a fantastic opportunity to apply what you’ve learned in school to real-world situations. It’s also a chance to bring diverse young talent into the government. So, whether you’re an undergrad, grad student, or professional student, and no matter what your major is, you’re welcome to apply.

You can choose two career tracks that best align with your interests and skills:

  • Public Administration
  • Science, Mathematics, and Engineering
  • Government Contracting and Acquisition
  • Liberal Arts
  • Public Interest Technology

For more information, visit gogovernment.org/fellowship/future-leaders-in-public-service-internship-program/

Don’t miss this chance to make a difference!

How to Work for the Department of Defense

When most people think about jobs at the Department of Defense (DOD), they think that it involves very hands-on work for the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force or Coast Guard.  While that is true in some cases, the DOD is much more than that, and the jobs are too! The Department of Defense is a very big tent when it comes to employment.  The DOD mission is to provide the military forces needed to deter war and ensure our nation’s security.

If you work for the Department of Defense, you are somewhat limited to where you will work and live.  While DOD employees are stationed across the country, the vast majority work at Pentagon in Washington DC.  In fact, the Pentagon is the world’s largest office building, consuming 6.6 million square feet of floor space, with more than 25,000 employees working there on a given day.

Many positions with the DOD are very technical, like providing emergency services to areas in the US that need it most. They also hire maintenance workers, information security specialists, technicians, engineers and public affairs specialists (see the #CJW community resource section.  Given the size of the DOD, it is its own community, so every job you would find in civilian life can also be found in the DOD.  If there’s a field you’re interested in, the DOD is, more than likely, hiring for that position.

So, let’s say that you’re hooked, and there’s nothing that you would want more on this Earth than to work for the Department of Defense or any of its subsidiaries. There are a few websites that might have what you’re looking for, such as usajobs.gov (and if there’s a government job in general that you’re looking for, the first place to look might be usajobs.gov). Handshake has often has positions for the US Army and the NSA, but not directly the DOD. 

The Department of Defense and its subsidiaries provide good, government jobs for people who want to settle down in one of a few select parts of the country and get good benefits while doing serious, important, work. If this at all interests you, keep your eyes on usajobs.gov and see if there’s an opening for your skillset!

WORKS CITED:

https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-US-Department-of-Defense-EI_IE14798.11,35.htm

https://www.usajobs.gov/Search/Results?k=defense

https://lawrence.joinhandshake.com/stu/postings?page=1&per_page=25&sort_direction=desc&sort_column=default&query=nsa

https://www.indeed.com/cmp/United-States-Department-of-Defense/reviews

Spencer R. Brown is a sophomore experiencing their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as a media and marketing assistant in the Career Center, and curates articles for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade, Spencer is fascinated in finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!

The Colin Powell Leadership Program

In late 2022, the U.S. State Department launched the Colin Powell Leadership Program “to further advance the Department’s commitment and efforts to hire a workforce representative of all segments of society and in support of the department’s modernization agenda.”  The program provides opportunities to pursue careers at the Department of State.

Named after the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and U.S. Secretary of State, this program provides paid fellowships to recent college graduates and paid internships to students who enrolled at accredited institutions of higher education.  Both paths may lead to full-time employment opportunities at the State Department and will develop future leaders through training, mentoring, and on-the-job experience.

To be eligible for the Colin Powell Leadership Internship Program, applicants must either be an enrolled or current student, on a part-time or full-time basis, pursuing their bachelor’s degree in a qualifying post-secondary educational program.  A cumulative GPA of at least 3.2 out of 4.0 is required.  The duration of the internship program will be determined by the participant’s anticipated graduation date and may not exceed four years from the initial appointment to the program.

Applicants for the Colin Powell Leadership Fellowship Program must have received a baccalaureate or graduate degree within the last two years with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2 out of 4.0.  The fellowship program is a one-year paid developmental program.

 Visit https://careers.state.gov/interns-fellows/civil-service-fellowships/colin-powell-leadership-program/ for more information and to apply during the next open application period.

The US Government Accountability Office

The federal government is full agencies that go by well-known acronyms, like the FBI, CIA and DOD.  However, have you heard of the GOA?  GOA stands for the Government Accountability Office.  While not a sexy name, the GAO is an important part of the federal government.  As part of the legislative branch, the “GAO provides Congress, the heads of executive agencies, and the public with timely, fact-based, non-partisan information that can be used to improve government and save taxpayers billions of dollars.”  Their work is done at the request of congressional committees or subcommittees or is required by public law.  The Government Accountability Office is commonly known as the “congressional watchdog”.  When significant amounts of taxpayer money are found to be wasted or inappropriately spent, often the GAO is the first agency to notice.

For students looking for government internships, the GAO should be considered.  For the last two years, the GAO has ranked number one in the Partnership for Public Service’s Best Places to Work rankings among mid-size federal agencies.

In addition to internships, the GAO offers a Professional Development Program for recent graduates that focuses on developing entry-level staff knowledge, skills, and abilities to meet GAO’s mission through work experiences, training, and ongoing coaching and feedback throughout a two-year program. Staff are generally rotated among GAO’s mission teams or placed in staff offices. 

David Trimble from the Lawrence class of 1982 (Philosophy) currently works at the GAO and says working for the GAO is “in many ways it is the perfect fit for anyone that appreciates a liberal arts education.”

For more information, click here for details on GAO internships and here for more about the GAO Professional Development Program.

State of Wisconsin Student Diversity Internship Program

Every summer, the State of Wisconsin offers internships for students across culturally diverse groups, so they can experience the professional work environment of Wisconsin State Government. Since the inception of the program, the program has placed close to 4,000 students in internship positions across more than 30 state agencies and university campuses.

​The Student Diversity Internship Program provides students with valuable, paid work experience and training in various branches of state government over the summer break. Many interns have gone on to​ obtain employment in state government as limited term or permanent state employees.

To participate in the Student Diversity Internship Program, students must be 18+ years of age and be attending, have plans to attend, or recently graduated from a two- or four-year college or university, graduate program, or a vocational/technical school program.

Visit the State of Wisconsin Student Diversity Internship Program web site to see this summer’s openings!

Government Gap Years

By Jonathan Hogan

If you are interested in working in government but you’re not quite ready to commit to a career, or if you are simply looking for something to do between Lawrence and a career and have a background in government, you might want to consider a government gap year. In the following paragraphs, then, I will outline the most prominent programs and what they broadly entail.

Pathways Recent Graduate Program

The broadest program for government gap years is the Pathways Recent Graduate Program. Most broadly, the Pathways program is designed to “provide students [and recent graduates]… with a wide variety of educational institutions, from high school to graduate level, with opportunities to work in agencies and explore Federal careers while still in school and while getting paid for the work performed” (“Students & Recent Graduates”). The Recent Graduates Program, as the name implies, is generally open to students who have graduated in the last two years. An important caveat, as with many government programs, is U.S. citizenship. Interns must have U.S. citizenship by the end of their one-year program. What sets the Pathways program apart is the fact that it is administered by nearly every federal agency. This means that students with interests as differentiated as agricultural and diplomacy could both find Pathways internships working with the State Department and the USDA respectively. Such a variety of programs, nonetheless, makes it difficult to talk about specifics. Most broadly, recent graduate interns are expected to work full-time for a year, for pay, while learning the ins and outs of their agency. Excitingly, one of the benefits of the program includes the possibility of being offered a full-time position at the end of the internship, thus making Pathways an interesting program even for those more certain about a career path with the federal government. To learn more about Pathways programs, it’s best to go to the website of an agency of interest to learn more about their specific practices.

Peace Corps

One of the most prominent gap year programs is the Peace Corps. Broadly, Peace Corps members are deployed to countries around the world where they learn the local language, typically live with a host family, and volunteer their time working on projects ranging from education to community economic development. While experience in the Peace Corps is not an internship with a government agency per se, its challenges of working abroad, fostering cultural and linguistic competencies, and working to support development overlap significantly with many positions in the State Department and USAID. The benefits of the Peace Corps include a stipend of $10,000 upon completion of the 2.5-year program, tuition assistance to a broad list of graduate school programs under Paul D. Coverdell Fellowship, and a higher likelihood of getting a job within the federal government. To learn more, check out the Peace Corps website and get in touch with a local representative. 

State Government Gap-Years

State governments generally have fewer gap year opportunities than the federal government for recent grads, that being said, many states do offer some form of an internship. In Wisconsin, there appears to be only one opportunity for recent grads, namely the Department of Transportation Internship Program. This program can see interns working in a wide variety of areas while “networking with other interns, state government employees, and management” (“Division of Personnel Management Student Internships”). State internships are likely to vary greatly, so it is wise to investigate the programs offered in your state when considering gap years.

AmeriCorps

AmeriCorps, much like the Peace Corps, is a service-based experience in which recent grads can gain experience working to help communities in areas ranging from disaster recovery to education. As the name implies, however, this program sees volunteers help communities in America. It is important to note that AmeriCorps workers work through an NGO partnered with AmeriCorps rather than AmeriCorps itself, thus, volunteering doesn’t constitute government work. Nonetheless, volunteers, who dedicate between a summer and a year of their time to the program are granted not only a reasonable living stipend and student loan repayment assistance but also professional development resources that can help kickstart careers in non-profit and governmental industries. Additionally, dedicating a year of your life/resume to government-sponsored service certainly helps one stand out to potential government employers. To learn more about AmeriCorps, visit their website!

Works Cited

“Division of Personnel Management Student Internships.” Wisconsin.Gov, https://dpm.wi.gov/Pages/Job_Seekers/StudentInternships.aspx. Accessed 18 May 2022.

Home | AmeriCorps. https://americorps.gov/. Accessed 18 May 2022.

“Meet the Moment.” Peace Corps, https://www.peacecorps.gov/. Accessed 18 May 2022.

“Students & Recent Graduates.” U.S. Office of Personnel Management, https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/students-recent-graduates/. Accessed 18 May 2022.

Jonathan is a Third Year German and Government major. He works as a Peer Educator to assist students in the CJW and GLI career communities. In addition to professional development, Jonathan is interested in the cultural construction of the modern nation-state, normative constraints on rational behavior, and all things German. You can schedule an appointment with him here to improve your resume, learn more about the CJW and GLI career opportunities, and work on anything else professional development-related.