How do I find an Internship?

As Canadas national capital, Ottawa has lots of opportunities for you to explore politics and government, non governmental organizations, business, media and communications. In fact, through contacts and creative thinking, we can find an internship relevant to your interests in just about any field.

The LLC program director will do his best to provide internship options as well as refer you to potential supervisors within your field. You are also welcome to suggest any placements you find. Generally the program director will have a prospective supervisor agree in principle to take a student, and will then arrange a meeting, either by phone or in person, between the supervisor and you. This allows you both to discuss projects and work plans, and ensure you are compatible. At the very least, it ensures you have contact with the organization before showing up on the first day. The internship is confirmed when both you and the supervisor indicate to the program director that you wish to proceed.

While we strive to arrange internships as far as possible in advance of the start date, it is not unusual for placements to be confirmed during the LLC orientation week at the start of the semester, or occasionally even thereafter. Supervisors often do not know until close to the start date whether theyll have office space and a computer, if there will be enough work, or what their own travel schedule will be like. While this is not ideal, it reflects the reality of government and business life. You will still have adequate time to achieve your required internship hours.