Summer Internships Available
(Openings: Summer 2013 Internships)
Deadline for Applications is December
21, 2012
Legislative Analyst's Office
Sacramento, California
Background
The Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO)
provides nonpartisan fiscal and policy analysis to the California
Legislature and has done so since 1941. The LAO (1) assists
the Legislature in all aspects of the budget process, through its
analytical and oversight activities; (2) responds to legislative
requests for information and analysis of the state's budget and
programs; and (3) conducts independent studies and produces
self-generated reports on topics of importance to the state.
Additional information about the LAO can be found on our Web site at
http://www.lao.ca.gov.
The LAO operates a 12-week summer
internship program as part of its overall recruiting strategy. These
internships provide a rigorous analytical experience for individuals
who (1) have completed the first year of a two-year graduate program
in public policy, public or business administration, economics, or
some other program that provides both a quantitative and policy
analytical curriculum, and (2) are interested in becoming full-time
fiscal and policy analysts at the LAO after graduation. The internship pays
$2,650 per month. Benefits are not provided.
Duties and Responsibilities
The intern's primary responsibility is to complete an analytical
product over a 12-week period resulting in either:
A stand-alone product that the LAO will publish.
A draft product that the LAO will incorporate into a larger
product it intends to publish.
An internal memo describing the analysis performed over the
summer, findings and recommendations, and the implications for a
broader study that the LAO is conducting or considering.
During the summer, we expect the intern to quickly gather,
evaluate, and analyze information on the assigned project, by
conducting independent research and, in most cases, interviewing
stakeholders. Typically, research projects involve travel within
California. In addition, interns perform quantitative analysis on a
policy issue and apply the policy analytical techniques learned in
their graduate programs to a practical issue facing the State of
California.
Interns work under the direct supervision of a senior or
principal fiscal and policy analyst.
At the end of the program, the intern will give a presentation on
his or her work to executive staff at the LAO.
Intern Projects
The LAO attempts to select projects that are of interest to the
intern and/or in a policy area in which the intern already has
some expertise.
In the summer of 2012, our interns worked on
the following projects:
-
An analysis of K-12 school district
spending changes as a result of funding reductions and increased
categorical flexibility.
-
An analysis of correctional officer
overtime.
-
An analysis of counties’ innovative
practices for increasing participation and efficiency in
distributing the State’s CalFresh benefits.
-
An analysis of the oversight and
regulation of private postsecondary educational institutions in
California.
In the summer of 2011, our interns worked on the following
projects:
-
An analysis of California's child welfare
and foster care outcome measures, program funding, and social
worker caseload standards.
-
An analysis of California's current
process for determining the cost effectiveness of its energy
efficiency programs.
-
An analysis of the Board of Parole
Hearing's process for reviewing prisoners sentenced to life with
the possibility of parole.
Application and Selection Process
The LAO is now accepting applications for this position. The
deadline for applications is December 21, 2012. Applicants should submit
a letter, resume, and three references (name, relationship, and phone number only)
to:
LAO.Employment@lao.ca.gov
Candidates selected for interviews will be contacted by e-mail for purposes
of scheduling the interview, which can occur by phone or in person. Candidates not
selected for interviews will be notified by e-mail.
Interviews will take place in December 2012
and January 2013. Offers will be extended by March 2013.
Questions on this position or about the LAO should be directed to
Sarah Kleinberg, Training and Outreach
Coordinator (sarah.kleinberg@lao.ca.gov).
The LAO
is an equal opportunity employer.