I looked at this option, and it’s hard to tell if it’s only for students from other universities or that plus AU students. Are you saying the students at AU basically have the same program as UIUC in terms of interning?
A naive question, but students can get internships on their own, outside of the univeristy, correct? Like a part-time job in their 3rd or 4th years?
Just noting that like most universities, AU has a semester in DC (ie, down by Capitol Hill) for their students.
All students get internships on their own. AU has good networking- students may get leads through the university / profs / etc. but they still apply and interview for them on their own. For most students (esp in years 1 & 2, but ime even 3) most of their internships will not be during term time, simply b/c of the distance.
Part-time jobs and internships are different kettles of fish (for a start, one of them is paid! most internships for UGs get at best college credit and a stipend.
@Twoin18’s point is well taken: for out of term internships, all college students are competing with students from all over the US. This goes back to the point that I made way upthread: the key to success is a combination of hustle and being able to take un- or poorly- paid internships. Note that 90% of congressional interns are unpaid (hence why it was a big deal when 2 senators (Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.; Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho) and 3 reps (Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. and Rep Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY) said that they would pay $15/hour. Take a look at what AU expects it to cost you for a for-credit summer internship: https://www.alma.edu/live/files/2123-2018-usa-washington-dc-american-university-su18
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In some cases there may even be an advantage to coming from elsewhere (for example S got a UCDC scholarship to pay for summer room and board), though once you are off campus and paying rent in DC for 12 months then you may as well stay.
But more importantly $15K extra per year goes a long way and would more than cover an unpaid summer in DC. If your kid is limited to paid opportunities because they need to earn money in the summer then it makes everything much more difficult.
S was very fortunate that his think tank job paid $15/hour, but it was the exception rather than the rule, and limited to top students mostly from well known privates (Harvard, Yale, Chicago, MIT, etc) or state flagships.
But
- Better in what way?
- Does it matter?
If he’s aiming for a PhD in poli sci, that stuff may matter. If not, though, how would it matter for him? (Keeping in mind that there typically is zero correlation between how renown a prof is in the research world and teaching/mentoring ability)
AU is absolutely NOT better than U Illinois for political science. I am a political science professor and would warn you off AU. Don’t think that because they are in DC they are better. Instead, because they are in DC, they have a large number of adjunct professors who don’t have PhDs. U Illinois, on the other hand, is an incredibly strong and vibrant PS program with some of the best scholars in the country. If your son knows he wants to study PS, there is no comparison.
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On what basis do you say this? AU is actually a pretty low tier school overall and PS isn’t any different.
What are his criteria for deciding this? What is he looking for from his faculty?
Based on your “low tier” comment, you seem to believe in rankings, so look at the lists of “The Best Colleges for Political Science”. AU tends to place decently high in Poli Sci in most of them. It’s not G’Town or GWU, but it is pretty respectable, generally anywhere from T30 to T50.
While UIUC is a T30 university, and a T5-T10 in engineering, Poli Sci isn’t its strength, especially compared to other public flagships like U Mich or even OSU.
Of course, if the OP decides that they do not want to pursue Poli Sci, UIUC has a much better selection of alternative well regarded majors.