LOTS of great events coming up!  Check them out here

Undergraduate student hoping to complete your internship requirement this summer or fall? Add deadline 6/19/26  Read this!

Politics, legislative staff, and campaigns

Behind every elected official is a team shaping policy, communications, and outreach. Legislative and campaign work is fast-paced, people-oriented, and deeply tied to the democratic process—ideal for students interested in politics, communications, and civic engagement.

Working for the US Congress and on campaigns

The guide linked to the logo on the left offers specialized guides on congressional internships, full-time roles, and fellowships

Campaigns: Political campaign types, organization and roles – includes links to the various campaign committees on both sides of the aisle

Government Jobs Logo

Working for state legislators

You can learn most of what you need to know from The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) website. NCSL was created by state legislators and legislative staff in 1975 and serves America’s 50 states, commonwealths, territories and the District of Columbia. Every state legislator and staffer is a member of the organization and has complete access to the latest in bipartisan policy research, training resources and technical assistance tailored specifically to their needs. NCSL offers members a variety of opportunities to connect and collaborate.

Two podiums ready for a debate

Running for office as a candidate

  • National Run for Office Day – tons of resources including a quiz that helps you decide which office at which level is right for you
  • She Should Run – by identifying and tackling the barriers to elected leadership, She Should Run convinces women from all political leanings, ethnicities, sexual orientations and backgrounds to see themselves as future candidates
  • Run to Win – from Emily’s List; recruiting and helping thousands of women run for office at the state and local level
  • How to Run for Office – from NPR
Stock image of voting booths

How do elections work?

🏛️ Sample job titles

  • Legislative Assistant
  • Campaign Field Organizer
  • Communications Director
  • Policy Researcher
  • Constituent Services Representative

How to make the most of your summer in DC

Or, how a policy internship becomes a policy job

Jarom Gordon, Jun 03, 2026

Editor’s note: Launchpad mostly features expert Q&As, deep dives on federal agencies, and other Serious Policy Content. As an experiment, we let Jarom (a Senior Program …

By Marie Koko
Marie Koko Director of Career and Employer Services
Read more

A student shares their internship experience with the Wisconsin State Legislature (Rep. Gustafson’s Office)

This internship was a great experience and gave me a much clearer sense of how policy work actually functions in practice. My biggest takeaways were learning how to approach issues from multiple angles to identify flaws in legislation, becoming more …

By Marie Koko
Marie Koko Director of Career and Employer Services
Read more

AI Search is here (in beta)!

Hello everyone. As you may have seen in my email last week, as of TODAY, April 15th, our Hub now features an AI powered search! It has some generic suggested prompts which I am not a big fan of, but …

By Marie Koko
Marie Koko Director of Career and Employer Services
Read more

Career resources

Contact & location

Phone
608-262-3908
Address

Sterling Hall, room 2406
475 N Charter Street
Madison, WI 53706

Career service hours

Monday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm (Remote)
Tuesday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm (Remote)
Wednesday 9:30 am - 4:30 pm (On Campus)
Thursday 9:30 am - 4:30 pm (On Campus)
Friday 9:30 am - 4:30 pm (On Campus)

To make an appointment with me, just email your preferred dates/times - and whether you prefer in-person (W-F) or virtual (M-F) - and I will respond with a calendar hold.