Observations about the Value of a Legislative Internship

NACTA Journal, Jun 2005 by Sterns, James A, Manley, Kathy, Olexa, Michael T, Fairchild, Gary, Wysocki, Allen F

Abstract

Student internships permeate many academic programs in Colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources, but are all internships the same? The purpose of this paper is to help answer this question by conducting a case study of the benefits of a less-common form of internship a semester-long internship at a State Capitol in a state legislative office. One objective of the paper is to assess both the commonalities and differences a legislative internship shares with more traditional company-based, private sector internships. An additional objective is to use the lessons learned from this case study to specify a general structure for future legislative internship programs. The findings include descriptions of benefits to all parties concerned with the case (i.e., the student, the legislative office, the University). Though these benefits differ from some of the main benefits associated with more traditional company-based internships, the primary implication of this case study is that legislative internships can create opportunities for students to have practical experiences in the ever-increasingly important area of agricultural policy formation.

Introduction

Student internships permeate academic programs across a wide variety of disciplines. Although these programs range in content, scope and structure, most internships match a student with a private sector company for a relatively short period of time, often during the summer break in the academic calendar. Researchers have examined the value of internships in the private sector and have found that students, businesses hosting the interns and academic departments can benefit from an internship program. A sample of specific benefits that have been reported in the literature is summarized in Table 1. The purpose of this paper is to conduct a case study of the benefits of a less-traditional form of internship a semester-long legislative internship at a State Capitol.

Several of the benefits listed in Table 1 do not directly correspond with a typical legislative internship. These differences, which will be elaborated upon in this article, beg the question, "What are the incentives for participating in and sponsoring legislative internships?" The qualitative differences between the two types of internships also raise concerns about the validity of granting academic credits for legislative internships. How is working in a public sector, politically charged environment different from interning with a private company? Can there be adequate "substantive" (i.e., intellectually engaging) work to justify granting credit for time spent on these types of internships? As these questions are not addressed in the literature, particularly in the context of students from Colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources, one objective of this paper is to assess both the commonalities and differences a legislative internship shares with more traditional company-based private-sector internships.

Internships, in general, are not without their critics and researchers have examined their academic merit. Most of these authors have noted the fundamental importance of having a well structured, thoroughly planned internship that has specific goals and objectives based on a pedagogy of experiential learning (Heinemann, et al., 1991; Ciofalo, 1989). Hence, an additional objective of this paper is to use the lessons learned from the experience documented in this article to specify a general structure for future legislative internship programs.

Data and Methods

This article details a case study that focuses on one student's experience as a legislative intern. The "data" for this paper are the observations by the student and the lessons learned from this pilot exercise by her faculty advisor. This section of the article summarizes the student's experience and is the foundation for the findings and implications derived from this case.

The student was a graduate student in a nonthesis (i.e., "terminal") Master of Agribusiness degree program, and had already completed a required agribusiness internship as part of her program of study. However, she wanted to better understand how the political process works and how a state legislature can influence agribusiness firms and industries. Although she viewed her first internship as having been very beneficial, she had come to the realization that a legislative internship could add value to her college experience and better prepare her for her career interest working as a lobbyist for an agricultural company or industry group, and potentially, pursuing a law degree. Her major professor concurred and encouraged her to apply for an internship with a State legislator's office.

The State Legislature in the student's home state convenes annually for a "normal session" that lasts 60 days, beginning in March. The only other times the Legislature meets are for "special sessions" called by the governor and once every 10 years to address the reapportionment of Congressional districts. Hence, in most years, the only opportunity to serve as a legislative intern is during the normal session. The student secured such an internship on the staff of a State Representative, and began her work several weeks prior to the opening of the legislative session.