INTERNSHIPS and their success

[Nole795]

For you college students who are looking to enter a career in federal law enforcement, don't rule out an internship with a Federal law enforcement agency. Internships allow a student to see the actual duties and responsibilities that an agent goes through on a daily basis. A lot of agencies will give you hands on experience in handling cases, interviewing victims, witnesses, and suspects.

I have had interns help put together a case packet for the prosecution from the inception to the arrest. Almost all the interns I have dealt with have told me they learned more about law enforcement in a semester then all their years in a CJ Classroom.

Internships also assist the applicant by introducing them to working with other federal agencies. A lot of cases are worked jointly with local, state, and federal agencies and the intern gets to make a lot of contacts outside of the agency he is interning. This actually helped an intern of mine a few years back. We worked on a case with ICE where the intern was fundamental in assisting in the case. Word of mouth caught on, and the intern was offered a position with ICE upon graduation, it was non-sworn but at least it gave him a foot in the door. I believe this employment would not have occurred had he not been involved in an internship that exposed his KSA (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities) to the task force.

I know of three interns in the past who got picked up by federal agencies upon their graduation. One was hired by Diplomatic Security in a non-sworn position, the other was NCIS SA, and the last is a Border Patrol Agent. While I am sure there were other elements that made them attractive to their respective agencies, I was interviewed each time by their BI regarding their experience in the internship program.

As a recommendation, I would advise potential students to wait till their senior year to enroll in an internship. This way when you graduate and begin applying, your performance is still fresh in the minds of the agents you worked with. These same agents will be contacted by a BI on your evaluation.

Most universities have an internship coordinator that assists in giving you a list of agencies to apply. There are a lot of federal agencies that offer an internship that may not be on your university's list. Many applicants tend to lean on the more "famous" agencies such as FBI, USSS, and DEA. Just remember there are other FLEA out there that offer just as good if not better internship programs.

Anyways, this is just another tool for you college students to add in your resume. Good luck!

[Big Sexy]

In BIG's group, we have two agents who are former interns. He knows of at least one other in our office, who did time as an intern.

Beyond the individual agencies that have intern programs, one should not forget that FLETC itself has an intern program. In the FLETC program you actually attend classes & get to see the different agencies at work, albeit in an academy setting.

[FlyMIA]

Great post and great advice THANK YOU. As a college student this advice is great. I even go to school in DC so I know I have a lot of opportunities out there.
Thanks,

[Kyn]

As a fairly recent graduate, I'll add some additional advice to Federal Internships - Please plan accordingly. Many Federal internships have a legnthy hiring phase, including a back ground check (not as bad as an actual full time Federal job, but still longer than your private sector places). You should start planning and applying for Federal internships approx. 8-12months before you scheduled internship semester. Also, you'll be competing against a large pool of candidates from all walks of life, bring your A game. That is all! Good Luck!

[schoromanski]

Hey Everyone,

As a current student interning for customs and borders, it was a lot of work to get it. Start the beginning of your sophomore year, begin calling all the agencies around you asking information about internship opportunities then go from there. It is definitely doable. Most people I work with and meet have HAD an internship with the federal government when they were a student in college. So it is higher recommended. Hope this helps.

[BP348]

I know a girl who grew up down the street from me who's an S.A. with DEA in Miami & she did an internship with DEA while she was in college.

Of course her older brother was either a senior agent or the RAC down in Miami at the time :rolleyes:

[FlyMIA]

I know a girl who grew up down the street from me who's an S.A. with DEA in Miami & she did an internship with DEA while she was in college.

Of course her older brother was either a senior agent or the RAC down in Miami at the time :rolleyes:

If it was only that easy for all of us. I called the DEA office in Miami last year (which is basically my dream job and FO) to see if I could do an Internship there over the summer since that is my hometown, they said that their office does not do internships. It was up to management and they did not like having interns. Hopefully I will be able to get one in DC my senior year, if not with them I have heard NCIS has a great one. But honestly I will take one with ANY Agency.

[Joeyd6]

I did a federal internship with the USSS in college. I applied at the end of my freshman year and got in for my senior year. Plan ahead as stated before! Plus I learned the USSS was not for me even though it was my "dream" agency at the time. I loved the investgative end, but it was an election year and I got to spend three days on the road and leanred that aspect was not for me. Then a guy got nailed with a trip the week of his daughters wedding and it was "all hands." The stress he went through to get switched and calls from the wife and kid were hell.

It was a great time, good learning experience and I still speak with those agents today, now on a professional level. Many would say it was a failure, but I was able to say it was something I really wanted, I got to try it out before I had to buy it, and learned I didn't like it. Plus I learned something, had a good time, made friends, and got an "A."

[Kimble]

I did a federal internship with the USSS in college. I applied at the end of my freshman year and got in for my senior year. Plan ahead as stated before! Plus I learned the USSS was not for me even though it was my "dream" agency at the time... Many would say it was a failure, but I was able to say it was something I really wanted, I got to try it out before I had to buy it, and learned I didn't like it.

I had pretty much the exact same experience by interning with the same agency as Joey. USSS is a good agency (I had family who worked for them), but I found from my experience that I would be a better fit with an agency with more of an investigative mission vice VIP protection.

[Maverick24]

Those internships can truly be a great opportunity. My cousin was an intern with Customs (now ICE) and got right in after he graduated college. Another buddy of mine was an intern with ATF he just got the call a month ago AND he got the office that he interned at (during a time where almost all new hires are getting sent to the SW border). The contacts and experience you will gain can be invaluable.