The State Government Internship Program chose 56 students this year to intern with state agencies, including eight representatives from N.C. State.
Since 1969, students from across North Carolina have pursued their interests through the internship program, connecting classroom material to potential future careers.
“This program brings three great benefits to North Carolina,” Gov. Bev Perdue said in a press release. “It gives our best and brightest students invaluable real-world experience in public service, it gives our state employees a helping hand and it provides North Carolina citizens with extra services and important work throughout the summer.”
Susan Camilleri, a graduate student in public administration, received the Policy and Legislative Affairs internship with the Secretary’s Office in the Department of Administration in downtown Raleigh.
“Though I needed the internship as a requirement for the Masters of Public Administration program, I felt that it would be valuable to gain experience in the public sector, being that I’m a student in public administration and have no professional experience in the field,” Camilleri said.
She chose state government because she said she wanted to take advantage of the fact that N.C. State is in the center of North Carolina’s state government.
“I wanted to gain a better understanding of the day-to-day operations of a state government, specifically how public servants interact with citizens as well as with the other branches of government,” Camilleri said.
Camilleri will assist the department’s legislative liaison with tracking bills that could potentially impact the agency and in generating legislative tracking reports for department employees.
“Given the diversity and breadth of the DOA’s responsibilities, this is a complex task. It entails attending committee meetings and congressional sessions in order to track changes in relevant legislation,” Camilleri said.
Cody Munson, a sophomore in communications, received the Workforce Planning: Assessment and Analysis internship with the Division of Governance Office in the Department of Transportation in Raleigh.
Munson said his current project is analyzing the NCDOT’s current workforce and projecting retirement rates over the next five years. Given those statistics, he will create and recommend solutions to the senior leaders on how to fix the shortage of labor.
“Though it has only been a week, I feel that I have already absorbed an immense amount of information. I have already been actively participating in leadership conference meetings with executives and played a pivotal role in projecting retirement rates,” Munson said.
Camilleri said she has enjoyed the experience so far and wishes to make a meaningful contribution during the 10 weeks she is there.
“I’ve learned so much already in the first five days regarding how legislation is introduced, debated, amended and passed (or not) – a process that is more intricate than I’d ever realized,” Camilleri said. “It’s also a delicate balance managing the public good with the needs of the department, while keeping in mind the agendas of superiors and elected officials. Given that Congress is currently in session, it’s been a fast-paced, whirlwind start, so I’ve had to jump right in and learn by doing.”
