Interns - Getting The Job Done
Any student, whether an undergraduate or graduate student, from any school, is welcome to join us as a WIPPS intern. It’s part of our mission to help jump-start civic involvement across all age levels and skill sets.
Our interns get involved in WIPPS community and statewide projects and collaborations, earning valuable school credit or other compensation.
With guidance from the WIPPS Director and the WIPPS supervisors, we have hosted over 80 student interns. WIPPS has also worked closely with AmeriCorps*VISTA participants placed on site through Wisconsin Campus Compact as wells as VISTAs attached to other institutions.
Our Goal – Helping Activate Your Civic Life
Students who show strong leadership potential in WIPPS projects and activities can take part in mentoring, service, and reflection opportunities. As an intern, you’ll get the chance to reflect on civic and community issues and get involved in the programs and events you care about most.
Have you ever thought about helping in your community, on things that you care about?
WIPPS Intern Updates
Testimonials
Lukas Rudolph, 2020
“My internship has given me a greater respect for the work that is involved with an organization that is non-partisan and public facing. It has also given me a greater understanding and appreciation of how to use analytical skills I learned during my political science studies and apply them to real world applications. These analytical skills are not only valuable when focusing on issues of public policy but it can also be vital to private organizations as well.”
Eric Ostrowski, 2019
“WIPPS is by far my favorite experience I’ve had in college so far. Throughout the couple months I’ve been in the program, I’ve learned more about our community and myself than ever before. This is because of the opportunities it provided me: becoming more connected with my community, outreaching to others in a professional manner, working on my own life skills, etc. It also allows for vast independence, which is very valuable assuming you can handle it. On top of all of this, WIPPS taught me more real world skills and applications than any other experience.”
Maria Espino, 2017-2018
“Participating in real community programs was the highlight of my internship. WIPPS helped me to see new options, I also learned more about myself. It helped me choose my major and taught me the importance of community involvement with programs. I was also able to apply what I learned in the internship to other aspects of my daily life, such how to use ethical communication. Overall, the internship was a great opportunity.”
Nicholas Klein, 2017-2018
“I would recommend to any incoming student to do this internship. The reasons are numerous. This experience gives one a very good look at how a community-serving organization works from the inside. It also provides students perspective by interacting with community leaders and getting a chance to see issues from different perspectives. To see the divergence and diversity of opinion up close makes it all the more real, and interacting with leaders builds one’s confidence.”
Christian, 2017-2018
“The hard work was worth it. WIPPS has taught me many useful things that I need such as how to manage my own team and how to utilize people. I also learned what I need to be doing in order to get my life and career started. I would recommend the internship to anyone who is interested in not just politics, but in a great experience. The people you work with are amazing. I plan on using the skills WIPPS has taught me to go out and be the change that this world needs.”
Samuel Cotter, 2016-2017
“Being an intern for the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service (WIPPS) has been one of the most exciting and maturing experiences I have had in my life. Being able to work in a truly professional environment whose goal is to promote civic engagement and community promotion is not only a very honorable thing to be a part of, but also a very humbling experience. The issues that I have personally been a part of including financial wellness, environmental accountability, and political agency, have grown my personal knowledge and engagement level as I have helped others grow similarly.”
Mirella Espino, 2015-2016
“WIPPS offered me a truly exceptional experience. I met great community leaders and was offered the opportunity to work on influential. Whenever I speak to students, . . . I almost always mention my connection to WIPPS. I would recommend that the university continue to promote the valuable internships students can obtain through their involvement with WIPPS.”
Konnor Denzine, 2015-2016
“I have really enjoyed being a part of WIPPS during my college career. Through the Veninga Lecture Series I gained insight into many of today’s big issues, met a plethora of wonderful and interesting individuals, and gained valuable communication [and] social skills that I will be able to apply in my career. As a member of the Oxfam Hunger Banquet planning team I realized how big of problem poverty is in Marathon County and in the world and gained valuable experience on to how to make these kinds of events successful. As the primary planner of the Get Out the Vote event that occurred on Wisconsin’s primary, I have gained more knowledge on voter ID laws, met new people, and learned the impact of what one person’s drive can do for the world.”
Jacob Langenhahn, 2014-2015
“As a former intern, I can wholeheartedly say that WIPPS was instrumental in helping me get to where I am today. Participation in WIPPS not only allowed me to cultivate my leadership skills, it also provided opportunities for me to get involved in my community. I was able to build relationships with many individuals whom I never would have known otherwise. Being a WIPPS intern wasn’t like being in another class. Being a WIPPS intern meant I was given the opportunity to take a genuine interest in addressing the needs of my community.”
Kayla Fleischman, 2013-2014
“I am very grateful for this opportunity. Before becoming a WIPPS intern, I was just beginning to realize that leadership and civic engagement tied into our everyday life. That has become even more true to me now. I believe that civic engagement should be a part of each student’s college experience. It seems like common sense now; being civically engaged allows you to better understand the needs of your community which in turn allows you to gain more social capital which helps you take steps towards changes that could be made within that community. As interns, we were introduced to leaders of our community while we worked at becoming our own civilly engaged leaders for an organization that puts a large focus on civic engagement.”
Yee Leng Xiong, 2013-2014
“From my experience as a WIPPS intern, the most valuable thing that I learned other than being able to listen to the community’s concerns, was that in order to get civically engage, you simply just have to open your eyes, your ears, and get involved. I think that is the most beneficial and major contributor to my future. This philosophy helped me throughout my intern projects, from serving on the Implementation Committee, to helping with the creation of the Hmong Veterans Monument, to running my own school board campaign. This was the most important lesson that I learned throughout this entire internship.”
