Internships in Government

Looking for more internships in Government? Check out the most recent internship postings in Government.

Below you'll find all of the companies that we've covered that may offer internships in Government. You can also look at entry level jobs in Government.

City Hall Fellows

by on February 24, 2013

City Hall Fellows Logo

Two weeks ago we took a look at the Better Government Association, an organization that “works for integrity, transparency, and accountability in government by exposing corruption and inefficiency; identifying and advocating effective public policy.” While shining the light on government misdeeds is one way to make things better, it won’t fix everything. We need better people working in our governments. My idea is to instate a political draft, but I’m not sure that will ever fly. City Hall Fellows offers a more reasonable approach. They’re a San Francisco, CA based non-profit that engages “diverse, talented young people in the work of cities.”

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U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress Logo

Judging from the current approval ratings, the American people are planning on making a lot more former members of Congress in the upcoming election. Since a group of people with an overall 80% disapproval rating might struggle to find work after they’re relieved of their jobs, we’ll need to find something for all of them to do. Luckily, there’s the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress, which is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that “utilizes the unique skill sets of its 600 members to provide pro bono public service programs and initiatives both at home and abroad.” Apparently, the organization used to be just a “conduit to keep former Members in touch with each other and create social activities” but has evolved to be something far more valuable. As much as I like to make fun of members of Congress, I realize that they’re for the most part extremely smart people with exceptional experience and political leverage. That’s a valuable combination, and a non-profit is a great place to put it to work.

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Council of State Governments Logo

A lot of people overlook the importance of state and local governments. They get all excited about federal elections, but overlook the elections that are closer to home. I’m sure there are a lot of reasons for this, but I’d generally like to start seeing states taking back some power from Washington (though the thought of the State of Illinois having more power scares me to no end). Anyway, states have a huge advantage in governing in that they have 49 peers (more if you include territories, foreign provinces, etc.) who are dealing with similar issues. State governments can work together, share ideas, and benefit from each other’s experiences. A lot of that is done through the Council of State Governments, which is a nonpartisan non-profit organization that “fosters the exchange of insights and ideas to help state officials shape public policy.” They’re headquartered in Lexington, KY (with multiple other offices), and they work in all three branches of state governments.

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National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Logo

Columbus Day isn’t much of a holiday anymore–it’s become yet another regular work and school day for many. It makes sense considering Christopher Columbus wasn’t really the guy that my 1st grade teacher taught me that he was. Still, I’m amazed by the feats of guys like Columbus (which is why I’ve written about Garmin and Facet Technology on past Columbus Days). Getting in a boat with an uncertain route to a far away destination still seems crazy to me, and these guys did it in a time when navigation equipment was quite basic. Their minds would be blown if they knew what kind of information the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (formerly the National Imagery and Mapping Agency) has. The agency is headquartered in Springfield, VA and has major facilities in St. Louis, MO (I learned about them from one of my awesome interns whose boyfriend works for the NGA). They are part of the Department of Defense, and they are tasked with providing “timely, relevant, and accurate geospatial intelligence in support of national security.”

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International Foundation for Electoral Systems Logo

Although the United States may not have invented democracy, but we certainly made it popular. That’s not to say that we always get it right, but we’ve built a model of government that has inspired a lot of people (the people who work within that model aren’t nearly as inspirational). Our nation went through a brutal war to achieve the system that we have in place, and now we’re watching similar processes happy in many places across the world. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems or IFES is a non-profit organization that “promotes democratic stability by providing technical assistance and applying field-based research to the electoral cycle in countries around the world to enhance citizen participation and strengthen civil societies, governance and transparency.” They’re based out of Washington, DC, but they obviously do a ton of work internationally. IFES has been around for just under 15 years, and they’ve already worked in more than 100 countries.

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Central Intelligence Agency Logo

I was a senior in high school on September 11, 2001. We were told what had happened during our morning announcements period, and a few of who had free periods after went to the beach across the street from our school’s campus. We knew that on a clear day you could usually see the Twin Towers from there, but all we could see was a plume of smoke. We listened on the radio and heard reports of the towers falling and rumors of other attacks in the works. I was deeply affected by what happened that day, and since then I have been waiting for our country to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. Yesterday, a group of NAVY SEALs did just that under the command of the Central Intelligence Agency, which is based in Washington, DC but operates all over the world. I am extremely grateful to all of those who were involved–especially for those who risked their lives to make us safer. It’s a reminder of how important it is for our government agencies to have top talent working for them. WIthout great people working at the CIA and in our armed forces, bin Laden would still be at large.

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USAID Logo

During my vacation I’ve been reading a number of books including President Bush’s Decision Points. I’ve enjoyed it so far, and the chapter on Afghanistan reminded me to take a look at the U.S. Agency for International Development (better known as USAID), which a reader recommended I write about a few months ago. They are “the principal U.S. agency to extend assistance to countries recovering from disaster, trying to escape poverty, and engaging in democratic reforms.” Right now they’re playing a huge role in moderating the impact of the war in Afghanistan on civilians, while they’re also heavily focused on helping those in Pakistan who have been affected by the earthquake. While USAID’s budget is less than one half of one percent of the federal budget, their impact feels much greater.

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U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

I guess Labor Day isn’t such a great holiday when it’s just another day of looking for internships. And who likes the end of summer? On past Labor Days we looked at internships with the U.S. Department of Labor and Stetson, but today we’re going to talk about the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. They are “the principal fact-finding agency for the Federal Government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics.” That means that lately they’ve been the bearer of bad news, but they’re also essential to economic recovery. Without reliable statistics our policymakers can’t know what to do. Additionally, without the BLS, I wouldn’t have been able to write my Labor Economics research paper on the effect of deer hunting season on employment rates in the state of New York.

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National League of Cities Logo

I never thought that I’d live in a major city, yet somehow I ended up in downtown Chicago. It may not be near any trout streams, and an occasional gang fight might break out while I’m playing volleyball at the beach, but I’m actually enjoying Chicago. Cities are filled with opportunities, and with so many opportunities come quite a few challenges. Cities can attack those challenges on their own, but often it’s better if they work together. That’s why the National League of Cities exists (I wonder if there’s an American League of Cities…). They are “the country’s oldest, largest and most represented organization serving municipal governments.” They’re based in Washington, DC and they work to represent their members in a number of ways including “advocating for cities and towns, promoting cities and towns, providing programs and services, keeping leaders informed, strengthening leadership skills, recognizing municipal achievements, partnering with state leagues, and providing opportunities for involvement and networking.” It makes sense that our cities should be working together, and the National League of Cities facilitates that cooperation.

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Hyland Software

by on April 19, 2010

You should have learned how to share in kindergarten. Now stop being selfish and go tell a friend about One Day, One Internship. We promise he or she won’t steal your dream internship.

Hyland Software Logo

I’ve been running a business for almost three years now, and I don’t think that I have a single paper document that I couldn’t throw out tomorrow. Everything is on my computer. It may be a mess of e-mails, Word files, PDFs, and Excel sheets, but it’s all here on my hard drive (and backed up too). Luckily my company isn’t very document intensive, but plenty of businesses and organizations like banks, hospitals, and government offices are overloaded with documents. They need a way to manage them, and Hyland Software offers a software product called OnBase to do just that. The company is based in Westlake, OH, and they are in the business of content management systems (although not the kind that run websites). I got the tip on Hyland from a reader who works in Career Services, and she said that although they have a Midwest headquarters, they have taken on a West Coast attitude.

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MITRE

by on April 3, 2010

MITRE Logo

Not many of the companies on Fast Company’s list of “The World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies” are non-profit, and not many non-profits generate over $1 billion in annual revenue, but MITRE fits both criteria. I know that many of you want to see fewer technical internships, but I’ve also noticed that most of the non-profit internships that we feature on weekends aren’t very technical. MITRE, which has headquarters in Bedford, MA and McLean, VA offers an exception. They are an “organization chartered to work in the public interest” through “expertise in systems engineering, information technology, operational concepts, and enterprise modernization.” They do this work through “four Federally Funded Research and Development Centers,” with one focused on the Department of Defense, one on the Federal Aviation Administration, one on the Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, and one for the Department of Homeland Security.

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California Conservation Corps Logo

After my Freshman year of college, I decided that I wanted a summer job that would allow me to work outside. I ended up doing maintenance at a fish and game club. It was like a great experience—even if I only worked 20 hours per week. If you want to work outside and are looking for something a little more intense than 20 hours per week, then you need to check out the California Conservation Corps. It’s a government run program that “matches up California’s young people and its natural resources.” Every year the CCC hires 3,300 corpsmembers and pays them minimum wage to take on projects like working on backcountry trails, aiding salmon restoration, promoting watershed stewardship, and providing emergency response services. The CCC has been around since 1976, and since then they’ve employed more than 100,000 young men and women with 98% saying that they “would recommend the CCC to a family member or friend.”

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U.S. Department of Labor

by on September 7, 2009

U.S. Department of Labor Logo

Having graduated from Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, I spent a lot of time learning about work, employment, and labor issues during my undergraduate days. While most people think that Labor Day is all about the end of summer (sorry!) and not being able to wear white anymore, my school ensured that I was made more aware of the history of Labor Day. Oddly enough, ILR didn’t give us the day off from classes, but they did excuse us from classes if we went to a big Labor Day celebration with speakers from major unions. If that sounds like something that would interest you, then maybe you’ll want to check out internships with the U.S. Department of Labor. There isn’t a more suitable employer to feature on Labor Day than our Federal Government’s Cabinet department responsible for promoting “the welfare of the job seekers, wage earners, and retirees of the United States.”

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National Archives

by on July 3, 2009

National Archives Logo

Since I’m going to have a non-profit for you tomorrow, let’s start celebrating the Fourth of July today. Now, I know that you probably have fireworks, the beach, hot dogs, and hamburgers on your mind, but let’s take a minute to appreciate the Declaration of Independence. It’s the best “I Quit” letter in the history of the world. It’s like that letter that you wrote to your parents when you were 14 and decided that you were moving out, except it isn’t completely nonsensical. The Declaration of Independence has a lot to do with why this country is so great, so I hope that you’ll take a minute to give it a read today. And where do you go if you want to read the Declaration of Independence? The National Archives, of course! You can see the original document in all its glory, or you can check out a more readable version. If you’re not familiar with what the National Archives is, basically they “are the nation’s record keeper.” They preserve and keep forever 1%-3% of our government’s documents for both legal and historical reasons.

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National Park Service Logo

Memorial Day is one of my favorite holidays—not only because it signifies the start of summer, but also because I love small town patriotism. My hometown always has a fantastic parade that is often accompanied by a fighter jet fly over. Now, today’s employer may not immediately make you think of Memorial Day like last year’s did (it was Weber-Stephen, the manufacturer of my favorite charcoal grills), but you’ll realize pretty quickly why the National Park Service is a great choice for today. Not only are some of the parks that they manage great places to celebrate the Memorial Day weekend outdoors, but they’re also responsible for quite a few memorials including The Marine Corps War Memorial, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, The Korean War Veterans Memorial, and The World War II Memorial. Memorial Day is really about our fallen heroes, and the National Park Service is constantly working to honor them by maintaining and managing our memorials.

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The White House

by on March 2, 2009

The White House Logo

Ok, we all know that White House interns don’t have the best track record, so let’s not even go there. We also all know that there hasn’t been a time in recent history where the government’s role has seemed so important. Wherever your political views lie, right now would have to be one of the coolest times to be an intern at The White House. An expanding government may not be good for us young people in the long run, but you can reap the benefits now by taking one of the many internships that The White House is offering. There’s plenty of information on the White House available, so I don’t think that I need to go any further.

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Library of Congress

by on February 19, 2009

Library of Congress

If you haven’t already noticed, we’re running ads for Groupereye this week. They’re a new site that runs case competitions where you can win 100 bucks and consideration for an internship, so check them out.

I love books. I love them so much that I won second place in my college’s book collecting contest. If you feel the same way, then an internship with the Library of Congress might be an awesome way to spend the summer. In case you aren’t aware, the Library of Congress “is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections.” Now that we have the Internet that may not impress all of you, but I think it’s pretty cool that they’ve compiled so much information under one roof.

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Bureau of Engraving and Printing Logo

I love writing these holiday posts. It’s always fun to think of holiday related internships, and since today is President’s Day, I had a lot of options. I could have looked at car dealerships or retailers that celebrate with a President’s Day sale, but I wanted to feature some internships that honor our past presidents. Since Washington and Lincoln are all over our money, we’re going to check out the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. If you’re not familiar with them, they’re responsible for printing all of our paper money, but that’s not all that they do. The BEP is also the country’s largest producer of security documents, which includes “U.S. passports, materials for Homeland Security, military identification cards, and Immigration and Naturalization Certificates.” They don’t produce our coinage – that’s the United States Mint, but they do have the coolest domain name in the government – MoneyFactory.gov – even though it kind of sounds like a get rich quick scheme’s web site. And last but not least, they must be pretty busy because the current low interest rates mean that the government is printing a lot of new money.

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NOAA

by on February 2, 2009

NOAA Logo

Happy Groundhog Day! Unfortunately, it looks like we’re headed for 6 more weeks of winter according to Punxsutawney Phil. That really aggravates me, so I think that I’m done trusting the rodent for my weather prediction. Last year we recommended working for the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club on One Day One Job, but this year we want to lead you towards a career where you’ll actually be able to predict the weather. That’s why we want you to take a look at internships with the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. NOAA is a government agency “that enriches life through science,” which makes them almost the exact opposite of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. NOAA’s responsibilities range from “daily weather forecasts, severe storm warnings and climate monitoring to fisheries management, coastal restoration and supporting marine commerce.” In fact, “NOAA’s products and services support economic vitality and affect more than one-third of America’s gross domestic product.”

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Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks Logo

Although I got to work at a private fishing club during one summer in college and spent two summers interning at Orvis, I still wish that I could have done something like interning with Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks. Being a lover of the outdoors, I can’t imagine many things better than spending a summer in Big Sky Country. In case you’re not familiar with what Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is, they’re Montana’s state agency charged with managing conservation of many of the state’s natural resources. Obviously, much of what they do is centered around managing fishing and hunting regulations, but they also have a huge responsibility of managing all of state parks (and there’s a whole lot to manage in a state like Montana).

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United States Secret Service

Yesterday was a holiday for a lot of people, and I’m going to guess that not a lot is going to get done today because everyone will be watching the inauguration. Many of you will probably try to use holidays and events as a way to put off your daily internship searching, but here at One Day, One Internship we try to make the most out of these situations by using them to generate ideas. Yesterday we look at internships at The King Center, and today we’re going to check out internships with the United States Secret Service. Why? Because today is a big day for the Secret Service. Managing security at an event like the Presidential Inauguration is a daunting task, but the Secret Service is at their best for events like this. That’s why we instantly thought of them when we tried to come up with some Inauguration related internships.

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Department of Veterans Affairs Logo

It’s been a while since we’ve featured any government internships, and with today’s being Veteran’s Day, we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to take a look at what kind of internships you can get at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Before you get in to internship searching mode, though, go thank a veteran. If your grandfather served in World War II, give him a call and say thank you. Or if one of your buddies has served or is serving in Iraq, shoot him or her an e-mail stating your appreciation. And if any of you job searchers out there happen to be veterans, thank you from the One Day, One Internship team. Now let’s get into what the VA is all about. There are 25 million veterans currently living in the United States and 70 million people who are “potentially eligible for VA benefits and services because they are veterans, family members or survivors of veterans.” The VA is responsible for providing top-flight patient care and administering veterans’ benefits. Our vets have risked their lives to earn the services offered by the VA, so it’s important that the VA has a talented staff that is committed to providing top-flight “customer” service.

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Smithsonian Institution Logo

We don’t even know where to get started, for we’re a bit overwhelmed. The Smithsonian Institution has the most comprehensive internships website that we have ever come across. If you don’t already know, the Smithsonian is an institution that was founded by a gift from a British Scientist named James Smithson.

I then bequeath the whole of my property…to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for the increase & diffusion of knowledge…

He had never been to America, so it’s quite puzzling that he made such a gift. Some people say it was his final swipe at the rigidities of British society. Since the gift was made to our federal government, the Smithsonian is a government institution (not a non-profit organization, like you might have thought it was). You will find the Smithsonian working in a wide variety of areas to increase the knowledge of the American people, and this means that they have internships in a jaw dropping number of fields.

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Cato Institute

by on June 29, 2008

Cato Institute Logo

Ok, we realize that today’s internships are going to sound a lot like yesterdays. While the Heritage Foundation identifies itself as a conservative thinktank, The Cato Institute considers itself more of a non-profit libertarian public policy research foundation. We usually wouldn’t repeat, but we were running down the list of Greg Mankiw approved internships, and Cato’s internship website blew us away. It’s fantastic. Their deadline for Fall internships is July 1, so we couldn’t even save them for next weekend if we wanted to.

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Heritage Foundation Logo

I’m kind of a nerd – I really like reading Economics blogs. So I was delighted to come a cross a a post about internships on Greg Mankiw’s Blog. He’s certainly one of my favorite Econ bloggers (and he’s a Harvard professor), so I value his internship recommendations quite highly. Unfortunately I came across his post when the deadlines had passed for Summer internships at many of the organizations he named. I made note of this, and now that we’re looking at Fall internships, I’ve decided to return to some of the ideas Dr. Mankiw shared. Today we’re going to look at The Heritage Foundation,

a research and educational institute – a think tank – whose mission is to formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.

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Chicago Department of Innovation & Technology Logo

It’s getting late. Many internships have already started, and others are starting in the next few weeks. We’re doing our best to continue finding great internship opportunities for this summer, but it’s getting harder to find internships that are worth writing about (if you know any companies that are still hiring interns for this summer, please contact us). At this point the best bet is to go local, and one employer that often takes on summer interns is the local government. That’s why we’re looking at the Chicago Department of Innovation & Technology and its internship program today.

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New York City Department of Parks & Recreation Logo

Summers are meant to be spent outside. Unfortunately, there aren’t many internships that allow that. If you’re an underclassmen, you can probably get away with taking a summer job like the one I took weed whacking and filling in potholes after my Freshman year, but as you move towards graduation, you need at least one solid internship on your resume. For many college students it can be disconcerting to sit in a cubicle all summer, so at the very least you should look for an internship with an escape route – unless of course the only tan you plan to get is from the glow of your computer screen. There aren’t many internships that offer a better mix of outdoor opportunities and real world experience than those at the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.

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Federal Reserve Board

by on March 18, 2008

Federal Reserve Board Logo

“May you live in interesting times.” It’s allegedly a translation of a Chinese proverb, but Wikipedia can’t even figure out who actually said it first. Regardless, an internship at the Federal Reserve Board should be extremely “interesting” over the next year (at the very least). With Bear Stearns almost falling into bankruptcy, and a lot of other investment banks in trouble, an internship in finance doesn’t look nearly as attractive as it did last semester. Still, if you’re interested in economics, finance, or a related field, a job at the Federal Reserve Board is a great alternative. Although connected to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Federal Reserve Board is a different entity. If you don’t already know, the Fed, which is led by Chairman Ben Bernanke, is responsible for crafting the monetary policy that supports the American economy.

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Council of Economic Advisers Logo

The President’s Council of Economic Advisers is exactly what you’d expect it to be, a group of economists who advise the President on economic matters and drive the policy that the President pursues. The current Chairman is Edward Lazear (he wrote one of the more interesting economics textbooks that I encountered in college), and former Chairs include Ben Bernanke (current Chairman of the Fed) and N. Gregory Mankiw (a Harvard professor and one of my favorite bloggers). You can see that the council is a collection of the finest minds in economics; hence, an internship with the CEA is just what any budding economist needs to get started. Whether you’re looking to go into finance, government, or academia, there are few better opportunities.

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