Hacks for Success: Public Sector Internships

Published Date January 08, 2025
News Type College News

Author

Jim Ellison
Career Advisor and Internship Specialist

Jim Ellison is the career advisor for the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. He offers 20+ years of state government and nonprofit experience to help our students navigate the world of public sector employment.   

Internships are essential for students and employers. As the career advisor and internship specialist at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, I serve as a bridge (and occasional translator) between the two to ensure they both obtain an acceptable return on investment.

 If you need help getting the word out on an internship or job opportunity, tag us on LinkedIn or email the Glenn Career Services office.

An Eye on ROI

Student Perspective 
Students that have one or more internships consistently get better jobs, typically sooner after they graduate, and are significantly less likely to be underemployed after graduation. About 50% of interns end up working for an employer they interned with. I stress to students that the best investment they can make in themselves is to seek multiple internship experiences, explore different public sector workplaces, and determine the type of organization where they can thrive, drive change and find personal fulfillment.  

Employer Perspective 
Meanwhile, public sector employers are competing for the best student workers, and the next generation of talent. Investing in an intern now could result in a highly-trained future team member. Interns that go on to work for a company generally stay longer and are a better fit to the organizational culture because both sides have vetted each other during an internship.   

Both students and employers can easily reach these goals. Here are my suggestions for public sector managers to find and accept the best future employees.

The Details and Fine Print in the Best Position Descriptions

Supervisor essentials for new interns  

  • Encourage students to ask questions (they are often reluctant to do so).
  • Make sure the intern knows what type of office software is used so the intern can get up to speed, using their free LinkedIn Learning access, before their start date.
  • Define your office communication style (texting is not an ideal primary mode of workplace communication).
  • Make sure work hours, start and end times, workplace expectations and work culture are clear before the first day.
  • Introduce the intern to as many staff in your organization as possible so they can see how the pieces fit together and how teams work and interact in an organization.
  • Have defined check-in times for feedback between the supervisor and the intern. 

It is essential to invest time to write a detailed job description that is neither too long nor too short and avoids jargon unique to your field. Department names and internship titles frequently do not provide insight into the actual work that will be performed.  

Include these details to receive more and higher quality applications: 

  • What will the intern be responsible for?
  • What skills do you need?
  • What skills will students develop when they work for you?
  • Start and end dates
  • Rate of pay
  • Schedule expectations
  • Interview and final offer schedule  

Pay, Hours and Other Benefits

Our students are not just focused on the ROI for their degree. They are reluctant to take on student debt, which makes them prefer paid internship opportunities. Typically, internship pay is $13.50 to $15 per hour. Higher pay can yield more applicants with more job experience. You can also expect a higher level of performance while assigning more responsibility. 

If you are unable to offer a paid opportunity, look for other benefits you can offer:  

  • Free parking
  • Flexible scheduling
  • In-demand skills the student can develop (grant writing, data analysis, etc.)
  • Stipend at completion of the internship
  • Free lunch and beverages  

For any opportunity, the typical expectation is that interns work 12-15 hours per week. This allows students to thrive at your office while balancing demanding classwork, vigorous involvement in student organizations and life in general. (Unpaid interns typically work closer to 10 hours per week.)

When to Post, Interview and Offer

Use these timeframes to get the candidates you want

  • Summer Opportunities (May to August): Post mid-February at the latest and try to have offers out by mid-March.
  • Autumn/Fall Opportunities (September to December): Post as early as April and no later than the end of June and have offers completed by the first week of August.
  • Spring (January to April): Post in September and make offers by the first week of November.

Insider tip: To help get the word out about your public sector opportunity, tag the Glenn College Career Services LinkedIn Page. 

There are ideal times to post internships.  

Summer: 
Almost all our students seek summer internships. The most competitive summer internship programs often start their application windows in early fall. High-achieving students will apply to these early postings.

Students who stay in Columbus over the summer are typically rising third-year undergraduates through graduate students. This provides more highly experienced applicants from May through August. Most first- and second-year students disperse to all parts of Ohio and around the country, so don’t forget to let our career services office know about your summer postings. If you have a need, we will have a student to fill it.   

Fall and Spring Semesters 
During the traditional academic year, many second- through fourth-year undergraduates and our MPA students are on the hunt for internships. To receive class credit, students need to confirm where they are interning by the first week of the semester. If you post an opportunity in January for spring semester, your applicant pool will be smaller because students have either secured another internship or made commitments to other classes and student organizations they can’t renege.  

Location, Location, Location

First- and second-year students generally do not have access to a car. If your organization is on a bus line within 20 minutes of Ohio State’s Columbus campus, your site is immediately more appealing. Few students, especially unpaid interns, can afford additional cost of parking. 

When posting a position description, you will want to list what your mandatory in-person days are so a student can plan for that when making their class schedule. 

Internship positions can be fully remote, hybrid or exclusively in person. If you are posting the first internship for your organization, or hiring a student with minimal experience, I suggest that the internship involve exclusively on-site work to ensure success for all. Interns benefit from the structure and serendipitous networking that comes from working in an office setting. Organizations that have established internship programs and students with prior internship experience are usually adept at successful hybrid work experiences.  

More Tips from Public Sector Leaders

From Niyah Walters, In-House Counsel, Legal Analyst and Internship Coordinator at Columbus City Council

To me, the true measure of internship success lies in the impact it has on the student and the valuable insights they gain. 

While it is common for organizations to expect tangible outcomes from interns, such as completing a final project that contributes to the organization’s work or simply adding another potential hire to their talent pool, I believe the focus of an internship should primarily be on what the organization can offer the intern. It is an opportunity for learning — an environment where interns can absorb knowledge from those around them. Internships provide a platform for expanding networks and acquiring new skills that will propel students forward in their careers.

Structured Mentorship
I strongly recommend incorporating a mentorship component, pairing each intern with a dedicated mentor within the organization. At Columbus City Council, every intern meets with their mentor weekly throughout their internship. These sessions can cover topics such as the intern’s current role, school, career or personal life. This ongoing mentorship fosters a lasting connection and offers the intern a resource that extends beyond the internship itself. 

Curriculum and Opportunities
Another valuable aspect of our internship program is the inclusion of a curriculum with information sessions and projects that go beyond the interns’ day-to-day responsibilities. Information sessions offer essential foundational knowledge, helping interns transition more smoothly into their roles within the organization. 

Additionally, projects like the Policy Pitch at Council require interns to develop and present their own ideas, providing them with crucial skills in conceptualizing, communicating and advocating for their work. These experiences will serve them well as they pitch projects to employers in the future.

Ultimately, it is important to remember that an internship is a developmental experience — a training ground designed to boost the confidence and professional growth of young individuals. By creating a structured, supportive environment, we help interns gain the skills and insights they need to succeed in their careers and beyond.

From the Ohio Department of Higher Education direct supervisors and agency leadership

At the Ohio Department of Higher Education, student interns are valued members of our team whose work is essential to the accomplishment of our agency’s goals. 

Relationships
Each intern works closely with the full-time staff member who serves as a supervisor and mentor. This relationship fosters an environment in which the student is able to grow as a young professional while making vital contributions to the work of our teams. Working closely with staff in a hybrid setting allows interns to develop the skills and sense of professionalism necessary to succeed in today’s office environment.

Impact
Our internships also permit students to benefit from the integration of their studies and their professional goals. For example, some interns from the John Glenn College of Public Affairs have completed research projects focused on issues related to the work of our teams. In turn, these projects have offered analyses of current issues in higher education and have helped inform policy decisions for our agency.

Leadership Support
Student internships at the Ohio Department of Higher Education succeed, first and foremost, because our senior leadership team welcomes and supports the opportunities. The department has a great work culture that incorporates interns so they can contribute positively to the agency’s mission. Interns are given the support, tools and resources necessary to grow as people and young professionals. Every intern from the Glenn College has excelled in our fast-paced, highly visible work environment; their work is exceptional, and the goal for each intern is to use this experience as a springboard to a successful career.

From Rachel Hisey, Executive Assistant and Internship Coordinator, Franklin County Auditor Michael Stinziano

An internship at the Franklin County Auditor’s Office is most successful when both parties go into it with openness. The best interns are the ones that want to take advantage of all the opportunities and soak up as much information about the office as possible. The best supervisor/host is also open to taking intern ideas and finding the intern’s full potential. We’ve had interns provide suggestions on accessibility and forms while also assisting in making processes more efficient. Their achievements as interns can translate into future success: There are currently six former interns on our full-time staff since our program was revamped in 2021. 

In-Depth Learning
One of the key parts of our program is a series called “Auditor 101.” These are hour-long meetings with all of our interns and a senior leadership member of our office. The interns learn about all the different functions of the office and what civil service looks like in county government. This is especially helpful for an office like ours where the different departments perform very different functions, and as a result they can be disconnected. Understanding the office helps interns see how their work affects the whole agency, but it also can help them learn about a field they didn’t know was an option. 

A great example of this is our Weights and Measures team. This group inspects gas pumps, scales and point of sales systems to make sure consumers are getting what they pay for. Most interns don’t know what this team does before they attend Auditor 101. After those sessions, they leave signed up for a ride-along to go out with the team and get firsthand experience as they check scales and scanners. This series has also been helpful for our interns who wish to complete a second internship with the office in a new department. 

Continual Improvement and Development
Another aspect that makes our program successful is we are always looking for ways to improve the intern experience. Recently we have added more training on how to work in an office. Additionally, we have started setting actionable goals for the intern to achieve throughout the semester. These goals help them be more intentional with their time, and also remind us as host what they are interested in, to better shape their experience. This can lead to experiences like making sure the intern gets some constituent service experience or a one-on-one meeting with the auditor to talk about what it’s like to run for office.