For POS 338, students work in a staff position of a recognized political organization or institution.  The course approach is defined as, "active participation in the political process." The class is open only to students with junior or senior class standing.  POS 338 may be taken only once for credit.  S/U graded. Interested students should contact the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Political Science.

POS 338 is the 3-credit political internship course sponsored by the political science department. It is restricted to juniors and seniors with at least a 2.5 cumulative GPA.

The nature of the internship and the semester in which it is taken determines the format of POS 338. There are two possibilities:

1. Part-time legislative internships taken in the spring semester. These internships are at the New York Assembly or Senate. Assembly internships are somewhat more organized; students may obtain applications in mid-October from the POS contact office. Interns are selected and placed in individual offices by legislative staff. Part-time Senate internships must be arranged by the student. Students interning in the legislature during the spring semester will be supervised by the department's Internship Coordinator and will be responsible for reading and writing assignments and for attending special class sessions to be held evenings throughout the semester. All students interning in the legislature in the spring semester must take POS 338 on this basis. Attendance at class sessions and completion of reading and writing assignments is not voluntary; it is a precondition to earning credit for the internship. Information on when these classes will be held is available at the POS contact office at pre-registration time.

2. Non-legislative internships and fall semester part-time legislative internships. Students may earn POS credit for legislative internships in the fall and summer, and for non-legislative internships (in any term) that involve a substantial political component, such as internships in the executive or judicial branches, political parties, or interest groups. (Law office internships cannot be used for political science credit). These internships require considerable preparation and planning on the part of the student. Students must arrange the internship themselves through an appropriate agency. They must find a member of the political science faculty willing to sponsor the internship and provide the required academic component (see above). And they must complete these arrangements prior to registering for POS 338. Interns in the legislature during the fall semester have the same requirements, since the department only offers the special course for legislative interns in the spring semester.

Individual faculty members may be willing to sponsor a student on POS 338, but students should understand that this activity is voluntary, and will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Considerations such as the faculty member's overall internship and advising workload, the academic record of the student, and the internship and academic component being proposed, may all go into a decision as to whether a faculty member will agree to sponsor a particular internship. Students should have the internship arranged, and have some specific proposals regarding the academic component, before approaching a professor to ask for sponsorship. Several faculty members have determined not to sponsor internships under any circumstances; they are listed below:  Professors Barclay and Miroff.

All students interested in receiving political science credit for an internship should read the following information carefully. It is the student's responsibility to insure that all the requirements for internship credit are met: most of these requirements are inflexible, and failure to meet them will result in failure to earn internship credit in political science.

Political science internships can be divided into two broad types: the legislative internships sponsored by the Advisement Services Center (formerly CUE), and POS 338. These will be discussed separately below. However, a number of requirements pertain to all internships.

General requirements for all political science internships:

Students must have completed their sophomore year with a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 to register for these internships.

Internship credit toward the political science major or minor may be earned only in the following courses: POS 338, UNI 391, and UNI 392. The independent study and independent research courses (POS 497, 498, 499) may not be used for internship-related activities.

A maximum of three political science credits may be earned for all internship activities during the undergraduate career of any individual.

Internships must be fully arranged and authorized before the beginning of the semester in which they take place. Political science credit may not be assigned retroactively for internships already begun or completed.

Internships for academic credit must have both a work component and a serious academic component. The work component for a 3-credit internship should be at least 9-10 hours per week for 14 weeks. The academic component must be supervised by a faculty member and usually consists of reading to be completed by the student, a journal of internship activities, and a paper or papers relating to be completed by the students, a journal of internship activities, and a paper or papers relating the activities of the internship to the readings.

All internships are graded S/U.

Alternative Internship Opportunities -- UNI 391 and UNI 392

These legislative internships, offered only during the spring semester, are sponsored by the Advisement Services Center (formerly CUE). They are full-time, 15 credit internships in either the (UNI 391) or the (UNI 392). Interns work a minimum of 30 hours per week in the legislature. An academic component consisting of reading, class sessions, and written assignments is provided at the capital as part of the program. Selection is through a competitive process and is open to juniors and seniors with a minimum 2.5 GPA. For more information, contact the Advisement Services Center.

A maximum of three credits toward the political science major or minor may be earned through participation in either of these internship programs. Students obtain application forms at the Advisement Services Center. Applications are due in early fall. They must be signed by the political science department's Internship Coordinator and by the Undergraduate Coordinator at the Rockefeller College contact office in Ten Broeck Hall to obtain political science credit. No political science credit will be awarded to students who have previously registered for POS 338.