Internships in Congressional offices can be very rewarding experiences. I am pleased that you are interested in learning about them.

I have three Congressional offices – one on Capitol Hill and two in our congressional district (one in Rockville and one in Hyattsville). The Capitol Hill office handles all of the legislative work and the district offices handle all constituent casework and community outreach. Each of the offices interacts with constituents, but in different ways.

Interns on Capitol Hill have the opportunity to see how legislation is created while interns in the district see how that legislation directly affects people. Responsibilities in all three offices include answering the phones, filing, and helping with the mail. Capitol Hill interns will often be asked to attend hearings, draft correspondence, and give tours of the Capitol. District office interns will be asked to draft correspondence, meet with constituents, and attend events in the community.

During your internship, you will be assigned to one office but you will be able to visit the other offices and see how each part of a congressional office functions and interrelates. This is a rather unique opportunity, provided by virtue of our congressional district being located so close to Capitol Hill. All of my offices are accessible by public transportation.

For an internship during the academic year:

To be eligible for an internship during the academic year, you must be able to work a minimum of 15 hours/week (for the Rockville or Hyattsville office) or full-time (for the Capitol Hill office). Please note that while having our district close to Capitol Hill offers many advantages, it also greatly increases the demand for internship positions. While we will endeavor to offer as many positions as we can, please understand that we will not be able to offer a position to every applicant.

To apply for an internship, please complete the attached application and return it to the address below with a cover letter, resume and short writing sample. Applications during the school year are considered on a rolling basis. Please send your applications by mail or fax to:

Fax: (301) 424-5992

For an internship during Summer 2010:

The application for Summer 2010 internships will be available after January 1, 2010. You may request one by sending an email to joan.kleinman@mail.house.gov.