The Department of Political Science encourages students from all majors to enhance the practical side of their education by engaging in an internship experience. Political science students have recently completed internships at sites as diverse as the Ohio House of Representatives, Policy Matters Ohio, the Macedonian National Parliament, the Legal Aid Society of Columbus, the Projects Abroad Human Rights Office and Big Lots Stores, Inc.
Consider enrolling in Political Science 4191 (3 credit hours) or Political Science 3191 (1 credit hour). There are no pre-requisites for our internship courses, and they are open to students from all majors.
Students are STRONGLY ENCOURAGED to make an appointment with Elizabeth Kloss, the department's Internship Coordinator, by visiting go.osu.edu/oncourse, calling Arts and Sciences Advising and Academic Services at 614-292-6961, or emailing askascadvising@osu.edu. She can help you to find an internship and advise you about how you can incorporate an internship into your academic plan.
To start searching for potential internship opportunities, please visit Handshake and check out the International Organization Careers website. Check out the Internships by the Numbers guide published by Chegg that gives insights about preparing for the multi-faceted stages of getting an internship as well as information about the current internship landscape. Also, the International Relations Career Challenge posts helpful blogs related to professional development, the internship search, and about careers in international development on their website.
APSA Internship Resources
https://www.apsanet.org/RESOURCES/For-Students/Internship-Resources
PS 4191
Students earn three (3) credit hours for completion of any of the 4191 internships. These courses are graded A-E. In addition to your work experience, there are several required academic assignments. These assignments are designed to enhance your learning and assist in your career development. Carmen is used to manage all assignments and course communications. There are no in-class requirements for this internship. Therefore students can enroll in any of these internships while working in places as diverse as St. Petersburg, Russia to St. Petersburg, Florida!
PS 4191 is repeatable up to a maximum of nine (9) hours, and counts as upper division credit in the College of Arts and Sciences. Up to 6 hours from 4191 can count toward the requirements for a major in political science. Three (3) hours of credit from 4191 can count toward the requirements for a minor in political science.
PS 3191
Students earn one (1) credit hour for 3191; it is repeatable up to a maximum of 5 credit hours and is graded S/U. While 3191 is an upper division course and can count toward your 39 hours of upper division credit, it DOES NOT apply toward a major or minor in political science. 3191 has fewer academic requirements and also utilizes Carmen and has no in-class requirements.
Please note: You may only earn political science credit(s) once per workplace and you cannot earn credit from different departments (like Communication or International Studies) or a different college (like Glenn) for the same workplace and term that you seek to enroll in 3191 or 4191.
Forms
To enroll in any of these internships, you must complete the Internship Information Form and the Terms of Agreement (including the signature of your evaluating supervisor) as well as a short statement which are located in the enrollment forms packet linked below. Once these forms are received and approved your internship will be added to your schedule* and you will have access to the appropriate Carmen site where you can find the syllabus.
*PLEASE NOTE: you will need to complete a petition if the addition of those credit hours puts you over the 18 hours maximum load permitted by the College. Contact Elizabeth Kloss for help with this by visiting go.osu.edu/oncourse, calling Arts and Sciences Advising and Academic Services at 614-292-6961, or emailing askascadvising@osu.edu.
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