The purpose of our program is to train the next generation of leaders in science and technology policy.

We aim to achieve that goal by selecting promising undergraduates, giving them intensive training, placing them in internships with high-level policy makers, and linking them in a network of alumni.

The process begins fall term, when students apply to the program. Those accepted take a dedicated course during spring term in science and technology policy, which equips them with the knowledge and skills they need to excel on the job. Then the interns work for government or non-government organizations for ten weeks in the summer. They attend a speaker series and carry out service projects at the same time. Those in Washington live and attend the speaker with students from a similar program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

At the end of the summer interns become members of the Policy Internship Alumni Network, an organization dedicated to training future interns and facilitating personal and professional contacts among alumni.

The program began in 2000 with a single intern in Washington, DC, and later expanded to include Richmond and Paris. We now place about eleven interns per summer. Over 70 undergraduates have completed the program. Some have gone on to careers in public service. Others have used the knowledge and contacts they gained to enhance careers in engineering, law, medicine, consulting, finance, and academia.

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