Apply Now! Local Government Fellowship
The Matsui Center is now accepting applications for the Local Government Fellowship 2012. Applications are due January 27, 2012.
Visit the Fellowship page for more information and applications.
Washington Interns Learn about the Nation - and Themselves
Each semester, IGS' Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service funds two undergraduate interns as they pursue a full course load and an internship in the nation's capitol. Recipients receive a $2,000 award to help defray the financial burden of studying for a semester at the UC Washington Center.
"The scholarship really helped," said Kansola Oshodi, a senior studying Political Science and Rhetoric who was awarded a scholarship last fall. "We were mostly unpaid interns and the scholarship acted as a kind of supplemental experience. It's nice not to have to think about funds in addition to work and school."
Oshodi interned at the US State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor during fall 2011. In addition to enjoying the autonomy of the work, and learning how to balance the myriad and intense responsibilities of a student and a working intern, Oshodi was able to explore her personal interests on the job market during her time in the Capitol.
Originally from Nigeria, she moved to the United States as a young child and returned to her home country as a teenager before coming to Cal.
"When I went (back) to Nigeria, the importance of human rights was vivid," Oshodi reflected. "The negative effect of this lack of human rights was really salient when I was there. I saw the importance of providing people with opportunities for success."
While working at the Bureau, Oshodi evaluated human rights records and saw how issues like those she keenly observed as a teenager in Nigeria play out in U.S. foreign policy.
Enjoying her time so much, and reaping the opportunities of her internship, Oshodi has extended her stay in DC. This semester, she is working as a staff assistant at the Bureau and moving further along in her goal to work in foreign policy and international relations post graduation, this spring.
This semester's Washington Interns are Ryan Barlow, a Senior majoring in Political Science, and Silvia Bruckback, a Junior studying Political Economy and African American Studies. While Barlow is excited to be interning with the Government Accountability Office's Trade Team, Bruckback will be working at the Disability Rights Education Fund.
You can find more information about this scholarship on the Washington Fellowship page, here.
Donation Allows Renovation, Programming at Matsui Center
A major donation from the Robert T. Matsui Foundation for Public Service will allow the Institute of Governmental Studies to renovate and expand the Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service, creating improved facilities for Berkeley students.
The Matsui Center will also use the Foundation's gift of $150,000 to support and expand ongoing programs designed to provide Cal undergraduates with exposure to the practical political world, said Professor Jack Citrin, Director of the Institute.
Read more about the Matsui Foundation's generous donation.
Former Cal-in-Sacramento Student Director profiled in
Capitol Weekly
Hanna Snider ('10) discusses working as the Student Director, her current position at the UC Center-Sacramento and international adventures. Check it out here.
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The Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service is partially funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education through a Congressionally directed grant award. The contents of this website do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.
