GV PS

International Relations Study Abroad Scholarship Winners

Congratulations to Haley Gerlofs, Quinlyn Mork, and Katie Larue for winning this year's IR study abroad scholarships! Each student will receive $500 for her study abroad adventure. Haley is currently studying in Jordan, Quinlyn will be studying in Ghana this fall, and Katie will be studying this fall and next winter in Costa Rica. Congratulations again!  

For more information on these scholarships, see this link and be sure to apply next year.

Haley Gerlofs

Quinlyn Mork

 

(Not pictured: Katie Larue)

 

Lizzie Heyboer Awarded Henry Internship

Lizzie Heyboer is this year's Henry Congressional Intern and is working in Senator Carl Levin's office in Washington, DC. She is responsible for legislative research, drafting memos and correspondence and administrative tasks. Congratulations, Lizzie!

The Paul B. Henry Foundation is named in honor of the late Paul B. Henry, who served West Michigan in the House of Representatives from 1985-1993.

For those interested in applying for next year's internship, check out the link above.  We usually announce it in January, and the application is due around February 15.

 

 

Amy Bush ('13) Awarded Internship at the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies

Amy Bush, who will graduate this summer with a double major in International Relations and German, will be working in the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies as the Intern for the Senior Historian, Peter Black.  This paid internship starts July 22, 2013 and goes until July 22, 2014. 

Interns at CAHS assist staff in preparing scholarly seminars, symposia, panel presentations, and campus outreach visits, may contribute to updating "The Campus Guide to Holocaust Studies," and perform research assistance for senior scholars.

This is a great opportunity for Amy, and the Political Science Department and International Relations program congratulate her on her selection at this prestigious institution.

For more information on this internship, see the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies website.

 

International Relations Alumna is Awarded Critical Language Scholarship

To improve her Arabic skills, IR alumna Aubrey McMahan ('12) will be spending the summer in Oman, paid for by the U.S. Department of State's Critical Language Scholarship.  This is a competitive scholarship, awarded to 600 undergraduate and graduate students this year. Congratulations, Aubrey!

For more on this, see the GV Now story.

 

Miller Johnson Pre-Law Student Intern Fall 2013

Pre-Law Student Intern

The Grand Rapids based law firm of Miller Johnson is seeking to hire a GVSU student as an intern for the fall 2013 academic semester.  The internship is intended to provide a pre-law student with exposure to a law firm and attorneys.

The ideal candidate will be a junior or senior in college who intends to go to law school to pursue a legal career.  The student should have a minimum 3.0 GPA and a demonstrated commitment toward diversity and inclusion.

The position is scheduled for 10 hours per week while college is in session during the fall 2013 academic semester.  The student will not work immediately preceding and during exams or during breaks.  The pay is $10 per hour.

The type of work to be performed will include the following:

· Legal support such as document review and deposition summaries.

· Opportunities to work with attorneys and observe attorneys “in action” in court and other legal proceedings.

· Assistance with the firm’s diversity and inclusion function.  For example, the intern may help coordinate firm D & I activities and events.

· Assistance with the firm’s Human Resources function.  For example, the intern may gather and compile information regarding the community involvement of attorneys and staff.

Interested candidates should submit the following to Professor Mark Richards by no later than 4:00 pm June 1, 2013:

· A current resume

· A transcript. Printouts or pdfs of unofficial transcripts will be accepted in order to allow applicants to meet the deadline, but applicants must also request an official transcript be mailed to the address below.

· A brief statement of suitability in terms of your interest in pursuing a legal career and in terms of your commitment to diversity and inclusion.

· A writing sample. The writing sample should be a written project, report or paper produced for a class at GVSU. Applicants may revise the writing sample prior to submission.

Applications may be emailed to richardm@mail.gvsu.edu. Applications may also be submitted in person to the Political Science Department office, 1121 Au Sable Hall. Applications may also be mailed to:

Professor Mark Richards

Department of Political Science

1121 Au Sable Hall

1 Campus Drive

Allendale, MI 49401

Finalists will be interviewed at Miller Johnson by the Diversity Partner and the Director of Human Resources in June.  The successful candidate will begin work in September 2013.  

Batchelder Scholarships for GVSU Political Science Juniors

The John T. Batchelder Political Science Scholarship honors John Thayer Batchelder who served as a Grand Valley State University professor until his retirement in 1997.

The political science department is pleased to announce that we will be awarding a $1,000 scholarship for the 2013-2014 academic year. Applications are due June 4, 2013.

Follow this link for the application:  Download Batchelder-application-form-2013

Candidates for the scholarship must meet the following criteria:

• Be entering their Junior year carrying a minimum of 55 credit hours.
• Be enrolled with full or part-time status as a Political Science major, degree-seeking student.
• Have an overall cumulative grade point average of 3.3 or greater (4.0 system) and an average GPA of 3.3 in prior Political Science courses as determined by the Political Science Department. Recipients shall be making satisfactory academic progress according to the norms established by the University and the Political Science Department
• Demonstration of financial need is not required although should the top candidates have equal academic qualifications, financial need may be considered. Candidates who wish financial need to be considered must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
• Transfer candidates must be accepted by Grand Valley State University for enrollment and recipients must be attending the University to be eligible to receive this scholarship. 

The scholarship application requires:

• Completed application form
• An official GVSU transcript (unofficial transcripts are not accepted)
• A one-page essay (see scholarship application form for essay question)

All materials are to be mailed to: (electronic submissions are not accepted)

Norene Hendricks

Grand Valley State University

1121 Au Sable Hall

1 Campus Drive

Allendale, MI 49401

Spring Course -- PLS 103 Issues in World Politics

Offered this spring, MW 12-3:20 p.m.

This course fulfills two General Education requirements -- Social and Behavioral Sciences foundations, and World Perspectives.

In the preface to his Essentials of Comparative Politics textbook, Patrick O'Neil argues that major political transformations in recent decades make it “increasingly difficult to sustain the notion that any nation can function without a good understanding of the billions of people who live outside its borders. We ignore the world at our peril.”  

This is THE course to help you become a much more informed person about recent developments in the politics of a wide variety of countries.

Summer Congressional Internships

Applications are now being accepted for Congressional summer internships, which typically begin in late May or early June and go through mid-August.  These are unpaid internships, but a small stipend will be provided for transportation in Washington, DC.

 

For resume and cover letter assistance, see Dr. Paul Cornish, the Interim Internship Coordinator.  Dr. Don Zinman will resume his duties as Internship Coordinator when spring semester begins.

 

For more information, see this FAQs sheet and the Congressional Award website.

The Languages of South Africa

Tuesday, April 9, 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Loutit 103

Thabo Ditsele,  Tshwane University of Technology

Co-sponsored by GVSU's Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, the Padnos International Center, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and GVSU's Women's Center.

Fall Course: PLS 382 Politics of Post-Communist Europe

Offered this fall, MWF 10-10:50 a.m. in ASH 1117.

Great for those who want to complement their knowledge of European and Russian politics.

And contrary to what some think, 300-level courses are generally at the same level.  The fact that this one is PLS 382, a higher number than other 300-level courses in political science, doesn't mean that this one is necessarily more difficult.  The department has internal reasons for the particular number, and it's not related to the difficulty of the course material.