Internship Placement in Political Science

PSCI 3906 and 3907 are designed for part-time internships taken alongside regular course work. The following requirements must be met:

PSCI 3906 (1.0 credits): The internship must run over a full academic year (fall and winter term), or over the complete summer term (early and late summer). In the fall/winter term, it must run a minimum of 24 weeks for at least 3 hours a week (total of 72 hours). In the summer term, it must run a minimum of 12 weeks for at least 6 hours a week (total of 72 hours).

PSCI 3907 (0.5 credits): The internship must run over one term (fall, winter, early or late summer). In the fall/winter term, it must run a minimum of 12 weeks for at least 3 hours a week (total of 36 hours). In the summer term, it must run a minimum of 6 weeks for at least 6 hours a week (total of 36 hours). – Available from Fall 2012.

For both PSCI 3906 and 3907, students must provide regular reports to their supervisor and complete a major research paper related to the internship (minimum 20-25 pages). The precise specification of these written assignments is at the discretion of the faculty member acting as the student’s supervisor.

Students must identify the organization that hosts the internship. Host organizations must be approved by the Undergraduate Supervisor. Examples of eligible organizations include government departments, interest groups, or international organizations. Paid jobs do not qualify for the internship; reimbursement of selected expenses by the host organization is acceptable.

Students must independently identify a regular faculty member in the Department of Political Science to supervise the internship. Faculty from other disciplines may supervise the internship if approved by the Undergraduate Supervisor. No faculty member is required to supervise an internship. Note that it may be difficult to find a faculty member available for supervision over the summer.

PSCI 3906 and PSCI 3907 are available to students with third-year Honours standing, a declared major in Political Science, and a major CGPA of 9.0 or higher, or permission from the department. Both courses preclude each other (i.e., only one of them can be taken); additional credit for GPOL 3100, the Carleton/Leeds Parliamentary Exchange, and the Washington Internship is also precluded.

Registration in PSCI 3906 or 3907 requires departmental permission. Permission requires that (a) the student has identified a host organization, (b) this organization has been approved by the Undergraduate Supervisor, and (c) a faculty member has declared his or her willingness to supervise the internship. The necessary registration form can be picked up from the Undergraduate Program Advisor in B640 Loeb Building or by emailing psci.advising@carleton.ca.