University plans new internship program
Students to learn in Washington

By HOPE CALDWELL
Collegian Staff Writer

Just six blocks from the Capitol in Washington, D.C., some Boston University students stay in 40 rented one-bedroom apartments. Like their peers in Boston, they take classes and live in a dormitory setting. However, during the day, those students intern with some of the most powerful people in the country.

Penn State's Department of Undergraduate Education is planning on a similar program for the upcoming summer and hopes to have a year-round ongoing program for internships in the nation's capital.

Jim Rodgers (junior-international politics) is an applicant for the internship program. He said he thinks it is a great opportunity.

"Even though I'm in the searching stage, I've found a lot of help from other parts of the University like professors but especially this program through undergraduate education," Rodgers said.

The director of the Washington internship program for Boston University, Donald Robinson, has led the program for the past 19 years. Students from the various colleges within or outside of Boston University may apply, then they go through a recommendation and interview process.

"About one-third of the interns tend not to be BU students -- we're one of the few programs that take students from other schools," Robinson said.

The program provides intern placement, finds housing and keeps tabs on the interns' supervisors. There are 26 participants and the cost is $7,800 for each student.

Boston University's intern program in Washington, D.C., which is in its 19th year, offers many opportunities. A political science major can make contacts on Capitol Hill and a liberal arts major can learn at the Smithsonian Institution. They offer semester-long and summer internships in five categories -- political science, environment, economics and three communications fields.

Any student with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 can apply for the program. Along with internships with senators, lobbying groups or C-SPAN, students take three night courses taught by experts in the respective fields.

Seven classes are offered, and a student will earn 16 credits for the internship and the courses. The eight-week summer program is similar, but the student only receives eight credits.

To obtain an internship, students can take advantage of various programs within Penn State's colleges that have placements all over the globe. The Department of Undergraduate Education is beginning a new program that offers students even more opportunities.

"The purpose is to arrange more internships in Washington, D.C., and establish a regular ongoing program," said Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education James Rambeau.

The Department of Undergraduate Education hired Michael Skonieczny, a recent Penn State graduate, as the project assistant who places students in internships, finds them housing, calculates a way to obtain credit for this summer and organizes a long-term, year-round program.

Skonieczny held an informational meeting where he gave out applications and guides about the program to at least 80 interested students. Skonieczny said he would like to place 10 students at most because it is a new program and he is the only supervisor in Washington, D.C.

Rodgers is happy the University is offering students internships in Washington, D.C. Having a contact like Skonieczny there is better than a company receiving a cover letter and application through the mail, he said.

Without this program, it is really a hit-or-miss situation to find an internship, he said.

One difficulty students face when looking for an internship is finding the connections to obtain what they need and desire. That is where alumni associations can play a major role to help students.

Undergraduate Student Government President Mike King, who has a voting seat on the Penn State Alumni Association, said the association would like to play a role in helping students obtain internships.

"Students would gain a valuable career experience and contacts while alumni will have the opportunity to give something back to Penn State," King said.

Rambeau added that it will be an enormous coordinating effort, with the alumni and the undergraduate education department working together.

Skonieczny has also been working with the alumni in Washington, D.C., to devise a way to include them in the program. He is planning to organize a social event to bring the alumni and students together.

"They could really help with identifying internships for us," he said.