Internapalooza Fall ‘22 Fact Sheet

POPVOX Foundation and the organizations of the First Branch Intern Project hosted the fourth “Internapalooza” orientation and welcome event for the Fall 2022 class of Congressional interns, in collaboration with the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress (aka “ModCom”), August 26th - September 16th. Additional information about registered attendees is below.

INTERNAPALOOZA REGISTRATION

In total, 361 interns registered to attend all or part of the event. 183 interns provided enough information to identify them as currently-serving Congressional interns; the following statistics represent only current Congressional interns.

Year in school

Of registrants, a majority of both prospective and current interns were upperclassmen in college or older:

• 11% in graduate school

• 21% graduated college

• 26% college freshmen

• 26% college juniors

• 6.1% college sophomores

• 1.7% college freshmen

• 5% on a gap year

Education

Responses total more than 100% because interns could pick more than one option to describe their current institution.

• 52.6% attending a private college or university

• 47.4% attending a state college or university

• 3.9% attending a community college

• 3.2% attending a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI)

• 2.6% attending a Historically Black College/University (HBCU)

Demographics

Gender

Registrants were asked how they would identify their gender; the following data were normalized from these responses:

• 60% female

• 40% male

Sexual orientation

Registrants were asked if they considered themselves a member of the LGBTQ community:

• 23.5% identified as members of the LGBTQ community

Race and Ethnicity

Registrants were asked to select all that apply from a standard US Census ethnicity list. Responses total more than 100% because interns could pick more than one option to describe their identity.

• 60.6% identified as White

• 18.8% identified as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin

• 18.1% Asian or Asian American

• 12.5% Black or African American

• 3.75% Middle Eastern or North African

• 1.25%  American Indian or Native Alaskan

Household Background

Primary Residence

Census region of primary residence growing up:

• 23.9% Middle Atlantic (NY, PA, NJ)

• 21.7% South Atlantic (WV, MD, DE, DC, VA, NC, SC, GA, FL)

• 13.0% Pacific (AK, WA, OR, CA, HI)

• 12.0% East North Central (WI, MI, IL, IN, OH)

• 8.7% Mountain West (ID, MT, WY, NV, UT, CO, NM, AZ)

• 7.6% West South Central (TX, OK, AR, LA)

• 5.4% New England (CT, RI, MA, NH, VT, ME)

• 2.2% Puerto Rico

Household Income

• 11.1% grew up with an annual household income of $200,000 or more

• 7.4% grew up with an annual household income of $150,000 - $199,999

• 22.2% grew up with an annual household income of $100,000 - $149,999

• 14.8% grew up with an annual household income of $75,000 - $99,999

• 11.1% grew up with an annual household income of $50,000 - $74,999

• 11.1% grew up with an annual household income of $35,000 - $49,999

• 11.1% grew up with an annual household income of $20,000 - $34,999

• 11.1% grew up with an annual household income of less than $20,000

Highest Level of Education Attained by a Parent or Guardian

• 8.3% Multiple graduate degrees

• 43.3% Graduate degree

• 30% Bachelor’s degree

• 1.7% Associate’s degree

• 3.3% Some college but no degree

• 6.7% High school or equivalent

• 6.7% less than a high school diploma

Path to a Congressional Internship

Previous Experience

Interns come to Congress with a variety of backgrounds and experiences; however, some commonalities stood out:

• 66.3% had a leadership position with an extracurricular activity or student government

• 60.8% had a prior customer service job

• 38.5% had a prior office job

• 32.5% had a prior internship in government

• 31.3% had a volunteer or paid position with a campaign

• 28.3% had a prior teaching job

• 24.1% had a prior writing job

• 7.8% had prior freelance work or their own business

• 5.4% had a service fellowship

• 0.6% had prior military service

Biggest Barriers

When asked to reflect on the biggest barriers to obtaining a Congressional internship, current interns noted specific challenges:

• 64.2% noted affording DC cost of living or moving costs

• 50.4% noted getting through the competitive selection process

• 35.0% noted feeling qualified enough to apply

• 32.1% noted a lack of mentorship/space to ask questions about a Congressional internship

• 18.3% noted worrying about working for a Member whose values they share

• 13.1% noted that they did not know internships were available

• 12.4% noted multiple attractive internship offers

• 1.5% noted a lack of accommodation for disabilities or health needs

Biggest Challenges During Internship

When asked to reflect on what they saw as the biggest challenges they would face in their internships, the interns noted specific tasks:

• 60.4% noted finding mentors

• 58.5% noted getting up to speed on the inner workings of Congress

• 52.2% noted building up their confidence

• 48.4% noted finding friends and peers

• 37.1% noted surviving the DC cost of living

• 28.3% noted making sure the internship meets their educational goals

• 27.7% noted overcoming anxiety about giving tours

• 25.8% noted overcoming anxiety about answering the phones

Most Important Goal

With these barriers noted, when asked to choose one goal that was most important in their internships, the interns mentioned the following:

• 27.3% noted expanding their professional network of mentors

• 19.9% noted deciding whether to pursue a career in public service

• 8.7% noted expanding their professional network of peers

• 7.5% noted working for causes and public servants they believe in

• 7.5% noted learning skills to become a better advocate for their community

• 5.6% noted deciding whether to run for office

• 4.4% noted preparing for a graduate degree

• 3.7% noted learning how government works

• 3.1% noted gaining confidence and leadership skills

• 1.9% noted deciding on living in DC

• 0.6% noted building a great resume

Chamber and Party of Offices Represented

180 interns gave enough information to identify their office, caucus, or committee. 

82% of the registered interns are serving in a Democratic office, and 18% are serving in Republican offices. 

76.4% of registered interns are serving in House offices, and 23.6% are serving in Senate offices.

The Congressional Internship Experience

78% of registered interns were attending a fully in-person internship in DC, and 6.6% fully in-person in district offices; 14.8% reported a hybrid virtual/in-person internship, and 0.5% were in virtual internships.

Interns also reported the sources of support allowing them to pursue a Congressional internship:

Percentages total more than 100% as interns could select multiple sources of support.

• 63.9% reported receiving a stipend from their employing office

• 22.9% reported receiving support from family or friends

• 21.5% reported relying on personal savings or financial resources

• 10.4% reported receiving a stipend from an outside organization

• 10.4% reported receiving a stipend or grant from their school

• 10.4% reported receiving wages from additional employment

• 2.8% reported taking out loans besides student loans

• 9.72% reported none of the above

To request an anonymized copy of this data set for research purposes, please contact info@popvox.org.