School of Public Affairs Internship Requirements

Students in the Leadership Program are required to do a 6 credit internship their junior year. Undergraduate internships strongly recommend for the five year combined BA/MPP program. No more than 6 internship credits for a BA in Political Science.

Students with CLEG majors are required to d a six-credit internship prior to graduation

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Sample List of Internships/SPA Professional Associations

Here are a few examples of the organizations where SPA students had internships during the past year:

American Association for Budget and Program Analysis
American Society for Public Administration
Association for Budgeting and Financial Management
Association of Government Marketing Assistance Specialists
American Association of Political Consultants: http://www.theaapc.com/
American Political Science Association: http://www.apsanet.org/
Blacks in Government
Federal Acquisition Council
Federal Asian Pacific American Council
Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board
Federal Criminal Investigators Association
Federal Education Association
Federal GLOBE-Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Employees of the Fed. Govt.
Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association
Federal Managers Association
Federally Employed Women
Human Resources Technology Council
Inspectors General in the Federal Government
Interagency Alternative Dispute Resolution Working Group
International Association of Political Consultants: http://www.iapc.org
International City/County Management Association
National Academy of Public Administration
National Association for the Advancement of Black Federal Emp.
National Association of Government Archives and Records Admin.
National Association of Government Communicators
National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives, Inc
National Association of Retired Federal Employees
The National Institute of Government Purchasing
Professional Managers Association
Small Agency Council
Society of Government Economists
Society of Government Meeting Professionals
Women in Government Relations

For more internship descriptions and student testimonials, click here.

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SPA Internship Advisor Chris Hughes:

Chris facilitates internship opportunities for both SPA graduate and undergraduate students . With a bachelors degree in political science from Penn State University and a masters degree in public affairs from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Chris processes the knowledge and understanding of the experiences that SPA students will encounter through the course of their studies at AU. While a student, he had the opportunity to intern for U.S. Senator Arlen Specter and Pennsylvania State Representative Sara Steelman, assisting their offices with constituent services. A self-professed "political junkie", Chris knows of many of the key players in federal, state and local governments.

Prior to coming to AU, Chris served as Counselor/Education Specialist for the Penn State University Educational Talent Search Program, a federal TRIO program. Most recently, he was the Program Manager for the Campaign for African American Achievement at the Urban League of Pittsburgh. He is experienced in providing admissions, career planning, and financial aid counseling to both youth and adult clients. In these positions, Chris was also responsible for formulating educational and career development seminars and fostering job development contacts. Chris looks forward to meeting with you in the very near future.