Below are common career paths for public policy and government work. This is not an exhaustive list! There are many roles and opportunities to get involved in politics, government, non-profits, lobbyist firms, and more. Each header links to an external site for you to learn more. For headers that link to Vault, you need to be logged in to Villanova’s Vault account through single sign-on since it is a paid subscription service the university has for all students.
Advocacy, Activism, and Human Rights
Choosing a career in advocacy can be a rewarding way to perform work you care about. Advocates often support important causes, allowing them to pursue a career that aligns well with their values. Organizations use a variety of disciplines in their approach to advocacy including direct service, advocacy, policy development, and research. Working with marginalized groups, advocates are concerned with bringing equality within society. In addition, the U.S. and international human rights fields’ are comprised of a broad spectrum of governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations which focus on the alleviation of human suffering and the protection and promotion of human rights.
Campaign workers help candidates for government offices get elected. By calling voters, sending out fliers, advertising on TV, radio, and the Internet, and arranging for campaign appearances by the candidate, they educate the public about a candidate’s strengths and concerns. Candidates for mayor, governor, Congress, president, and other local, state, and federal offices must use campaign workers and managers to handle many of the details of an election, such as budgets and expenses, fund-raising, and press relations. Campaign workers are needed all across the country, in cities large and small, to assist with primaries and elections.
Congressional Staff | A Day in the Life: Staff Assistant on Capitol Hill
Congressional aides are the men and women who staff the offices of the members of the United States Congress. Working for senators and representatives, they assist with a variety of congressional duties, from administrative details to extensive research on legislation. Members of Congress typically include among their staff legislative assistants, a press secretary, a chief of staff, an office manager, a personal secretary, a legislative correspondent, and constituent services representatives. Aides are generally divided into two groups: personal staff and committee staff. An aide may work in an office in Washington, D.C., or in a local district or state office. The U.S. House of Representatives reports that its total workforce numbers are approximately 10,000 employees, with more than half working in Washington, D.C.
Corporate Lawyers/General Counsel
Corporate lawyers, sometimes known as corporation lawyers or attorneys, corporate counsels, and general counsels, advise corporations concerning their legal rights, obligations, and privileges. They study constitutions, statutes, previous decisions, ordinances, and decisions of quasi-judicial bodies that are applicable to corporations. They advise corporations on the pros and cons of prosecuting or defending a lawsuit. They act as agents of the corporation in various business transactions and seek to help clients avoid expensive litigation. Approximately 823,900 lawyers are employed at corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations throughout the United States.
Federal and state officials hold positions in the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government at the state and national levels. They include governors, judges, senators, representatives, and the president and vice president of the country. Government officials are responsible for preserving the government against external and domestic threats, supervising and resolving conflicts between private and public interest, regulating the economy, protecting political and social rights of the citizens, and providing services to constituents. Officials may, among other things, pass laws, set up social service programs, and allocate the taxpayers’ money on goods and services.
Federal Departments & Agencies
Federal jobs exist within the executive agencies of the federal government. From climate change to national security, highway safety to space exploration (and everything in between), the federal government offers a huge range of job opportunities in every branch of government and in over 400 federal agencies. Federal employees help the government function by maintaining its operations and providing its services to civilians. The majority of federal employees are civil service employees, with a smaller subsection being political appointees. Hiring within the federal government is a decentralized process which means that each agency manages its own hiring and is best viewed as a separate employer. The US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) functions as the federal government’s human resource division, regulates hiring practices and provides vacancy information for the entire federal government. To find and apply to jobs within the government, create a profile with usajobs.com. Another user-friendly resource to review is the Go Government Internship Finder, created by the Partnership for Public Service.
Foundations/Philanthropy and Nonprofit Organizations
Private foundations are nonprofit, philanthropic organizations that make grants to charitable causes in areas such as education, community, healthcare, religion, science, arts, and culture. Some private foundations are sustained by funds or endowments from individuals or families, while others are funded by corporations.
Government Relations/Government Affairs/Lobbying
Government relations, also known as lobbying, consists of individuals and organizations engaged in promoting the interests of their employers or clients. Their activities involve monitoring legislative and executive activities to influence policy, legislation, regulations, or negotiations, on behalf of governments, industries, specific companies, interest groups or constituencies. In Washington, DC, lobbying is regulated by law, calling for disclosure by lobbyists of organizations or clients they represent, LDA (Lobbying Disclosure Act) or FARA (Foreign Agents Registration Act).
Political reporters collect information on newsworthy events of a political nature and prepare stories for radio or television broadcast. Political reporters may present stories that simply provide information about local, state, national, or international events, or they may present opposing points of view on issues of current political interest. In this latter capacity, the press plays an important role in monitoring the actions of public officials and others in positions of power.
Research Organizations and Think Tanks
Research organizations and think tanks seek to influence policy making on regional, national, and international scales using research and analysis. While the priorities and political alignments of each differ, they all work to provide data and recommendations to support their organization’s mission or their clients interests. Potential areas of focus include economics, security, defense, education, political polling and data collection, the environment, public health, and international relations. In addition to their research efforts, many research organizations and think tanks produce major publications or organize professional conferences, lectures and policy forums. Examples of think tanks.
