How does helping out your community while gaining skills and experience for your future career sound? Pretty great, right? How about also scoring credit for your time? It’s a no-brainer.
The UWA McCusker Centre for Citizenship offers hundreds of internship opportunities every year to UWA students looking to lend a hand and develop key employability skills at the same time.
Internships focus on creating caring, connected and socially engaged students who enjoy actively contributing to the world around them.
You could be placed with one of 300+ partners, spanning not-for-profit, community and government organisations, and undertake a structured, hands-on internship for credit.
Over 100 hours, you could gain insight into areas like social justice, community development, environmental conservation, the provision of care, human rights, advocacy, community capacity building and activism.
What can I take away from an internship?
- Professional experience in a community, not-for-profit or government environment
- Valuable transferable skills
- A deeper awareness of critical social issues challenging society.
- A strong understanding of professional responsibility and active citizenship
- Connections and professional networks within the community
- An understanding of how to apply your knowledge and skills post-degree
What do other students say?
“I would strongly encourage other students to do a McCusker Centre for Citizenship internship. You get the opportunity to meet new people and establish a professional network. What you learn during an internship are a variety of transferable practical skills, which are invaluable for your future career.”
Nicole (pictured), Political Science and Marketing student and intern at the Department of Transport
“I would 100% recommend it to other students. The experience in the workplace and ability to see your degree put into action is such a worthwhile experience. Being able to make worthwhile change while still studying is empowering.”
Gabby, Biomedical Science student and intern at the Salvation Army
What impact could I make?
Master of Professional Engineering student Alexandra Lyons (pictured) conducted an environmental sustainability audit for Perth Festival, providing estimations of the Festival’s carbon footprint and recommendations on how they could reduce emissions associated with the Festival. She also produced an emissions calculator to help future Perth Festival programmers understand the carbon footprint of various decisions and operation choices.
“By understanding where the bulk of our emissions are coming from, we can make informed actions to start reducing them,” says Alexandra.
Software Engineering student Alex Arnold (pictured) developed a smartphone app for the Men’s Resource Centre in Albany, aimed at supporting men’s physical and mental health. Alex continued to work on the project voluntarily for the next 18 months after he finished his internship. The app is now widely available on the Apple App Store and Google Play, and was launched by WA Health Minister, the Honourable Roger Cook.
“The internship is one of the best learning experiences you’ll ever have while at university. It’s not like anything else you’ll do,” says Alex.
Ready to make a difference?
You can undertake an internship by enrolling in the UWA McCusker Centre for Citizenship Internship unit. Internships are very popular, so your first step is to check with your Student Advising Office for more information. Interns are selected on a competitive basis and then matched to suitable roles. To find out more and to check your eligibility, visit the Internships page on the McCusker Centre for Citizenship website. You can also hear from other interns and read their stories.
