UC Davis Washington Center

Bruce W. Jentleson, Director and Professor

UC Davis Washington Center,
2301 M Street, NW, 5th Floor,
Washington, D.C. 20037
(202-296-8221)

Information:

UC Davis Washington Center On-Campus Office

Internship and Career Center

South Hall, 2nd Floor, 916-752-7260

The UC Davis Washington Center began operations in the 1990-91 academic year. It provides students and faculty new and expanded opportunities in the nation's capital to enrich their education and research. Its principal activities are an undergraduate academic internship program, fellowships and internships for graduate and professional school students, fellowships and research grants for faculty, and satellite interactive "tele-courses."

Undergraduate Academic Internship Program

The UC Davis Washington Center undergraduate program is open to students from all majors at UC Davis who have completed 84 units towards graduation. Students earn 12-16 units of academic credit, continue to be registered as full-time students, and fulfill university residency requirements. A GPA of approximately 3.0 is recommended for admission. Applicants also are evaluated based on a written statement, letters of recommendation and personal interviews.

The Undergraduate Program runs fall and spring quarters, on a 12-13 week "extended quarter" basis. It has two principal components:

* Internships/Research Projects (8 units): Students work three to four days per week as interns in Congress, federal agencies, interest groups, trade associations, research institutions, the media, museums or in other organizations related to policy, politics, science and culture and geared to the interests and objectives of individual students. Drawing on the internship experience, each student develops an independent research project, under the supervision of a member of the faculty.

* Policy-Process Seminar (4 units): Each student also enrolls in one upper division seminar course taught at the Washington Center. Most of these courses focus on a particular area of policy (e.g., foreign policy, science policy, social policy, economic policy, agricultural policy) and the key issues, the politics, the principal institutions, and the dynamics of the process within that policy area. Some are of more general interest, designed to draw on some of the unique historical, scientific, cultural and artistic resources of Washington. In addition to regular instruction, seminars often include guest speakers, observations of congressional committees and federal agencies, and other relevant Washington experiences.

Courses are taught by UC Davis faculty in residence, faculty from the UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC Santa Cruz and UC Berkeley Washington programs, or visiting faculty from the Washington area.

Financial aid eligibility is maintained, and the aid package can be adjusted to reflect the additional costs of the Program. Some additional financial awards also are offered directly by the Washington Center, including the University of California President's Washington Scholarship Program, and the Joyce and Norman Weil Scholarships.

Students live in university-arranged housing, convenient to public transportation. Arrangements also are made to cover health services and other aspects of student life. The program also includes many educational, cultural and historical activities in the Washington area.

Students also may participate in a Summer Program. The Summer Program is non-credit. It includes internships and many of the same educational, cultural, historical and social activities but no courses or research projects. The program fee is $200. Some financial assistance is provided but more limited than for the academic year programs.

The Washington Center also has two positions during the academic year for graduate students as Graduate Fellows (combination of a predoctoral research fellowship and a teaching assistantship) and Graduate Summer Internships.

In partnership with faculty on campus, the Washington Center also conducts satellite interactive "tele-courses" in which students on the Davis campus participate in interviews and seminars with federal government officials and other experts from the nation's capital.

The Washington Center also houses one of the computer laboratories that, along with the main one on campus in the Political Science Department, comprise the UC Davis Sun Technology and Research Excellence Center (Sun TREC). Made possible through a major grant from Sun Microsystems Computer Company, Sun TREC UC Davis is developing innovative technology-based projects involving faculty, students, the private sector and policy makers at the federal, state, and local levels on key public policy issues.

UC Davis 1997-98 Online General Catalog. Posted August 1, 1997.
catalog-comment@ucdavis.edu
Keitha Hunter and Barbara Anderson, Editors

We welcome your comments.