Career Development
Advancing Successful Careers in Public Service
Our Career Development team works with students in a variety of ways to ensure they have the experience and network needed for an impactful career in public service. We provide support for admitted students, current students, and alumni one year after graduation.
Career Development Services for Evans Students
The University of Washington’s Career & Internship Center supports graduate students with job postings, events, one-on-one career coaching through scheduled appoinments, and other resources.
The Evans School offers events and resources specific to our field, including career fairs, panels, and foundations workshops. Our Career Development team is dedicated to maintaining and growing a strong network of employers. As the career interests of students evolve each year, we target organizations and policy areas of interest to incoming Evans School students, creating new partnerships and opportunities for engagement and employment.
Handshake
Students and alumni have access to the Evans School’s Handshake account, a hub for full-time, part-time, contract, and internship positions.
High Impact Careers
We survey Evans alumni six months after they graduate to learn about their career path. That information is pooled to create an annual employment report, featuring employment outcomes by sector.
Expansive Alumni Network
As a strong and reputable presence in the Pacific Northwest for more than 60 years, the Evans School is trusted and deeply embedded throughout the public, private, and nonprofit organizations across the Pacific Northwest and beyond.
The Evans School’s alumni network spans across 6 continents, 56 countries, 49 U.S. states and territories, and 684 cities around the world. Our growing global network more than 5,500 alumni working for organizations including the City of Seattle, the Obama Foundation, the Washington State Department of Ecology, Mathematica Policy Research, and more. Use the Evans School LinkedIn to find and connect with alumni by sector, location, organization, and job title.
Frequently Asked Questions
Many MPA students work or intern at least part-time while attending graduate school. Students may choose to work during the academic year, but most students seek a graduate-level internship or work experience during the summer between their first and second year in the MPA program. International students may work but must be aware of the U.S. laws for F1/J1 visas to work off-campus. Due to the connection of their visas to their academic status, it is strongly recommended for international students not to work full-time during the academic year.
EMPA and certificate students are more likely to be employed full-time, in large part because those programs are designed to be work compatible.
Ph.D. students receive part-time teaching or research assistantships as part of their funding package.
The Evans School makes a concerted effort to encourage employers to offer paid internships; in fact, since 2018 more than 70% of internships secured by Evans MPA students have been paid opportunities. If a student accepts an unpaid summer internship, they may be eligible to apply for internship fellowship funding through the Evans School. Note: funding is limited and cannot be guaranteed.
87% of internships reported by the graduating MPA Class of 2023 were paid. Internships Evans MPA students have completed include:
- Child Care Resources – Grant Implementation Intern
- City of Bellevue – Neighborhood Traffic Safety Intern
- City of Kirkland – Recovery Intern, Financial Planning
- City of Seattle – Municipal Government Intern
- City of Shoreline – City Manager’s Office Fellow
- Duwamish Tribal Services – Graduate Intern, Public Policy & Nonprofit Management
- Moss Adams – Public Sector Strategy and Operations Consulting Intern
- Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington (MRSC) – Public Policy Intern
- PATH – Asset Tracker Intern
- Port of Seattle – Summer Intern, Commission Office
- Sankofa Consulting – Intern Monitoring & Evaluation
- Seattle Public Utilities – Environmental Justice & Service Equity Graduate Intern
- U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) – Knowledge Management Intern
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – Policy Intern for Strategy and Innovation
- United Way of King County – Public Policy Graduate Intern
- Vulcan Inc./Paul G. Allen Family Foundation – Impact Entrepreneurial Intern
- Washington Environmental Council (WEC) – Water Quality Intern
- Washington Maritime Blue – Maritime Blue Graduate Fellow
- Washington State Department of Commerce – Energy Policy Intern
- Washington State House of Representatives – Legislative Assistant
- Washington State Institute for Public Policy – Research Assistant
- Washington State Senate Committee Services – Summer Intern
Contact Us
If you have questions about our Career Development services, programs, or the admissions process, please contact us at evansadm@uw.edu.