Graduate Internship

Please note: The award is not available in 2009.


This award was established by colleagues, friends and admirers of the late Associate Professor Patrick O'Brien. It is open to UWA students and graduates with majors in political science who will complete undergraduate degrees by the end of the year or who have completed degrees within the previous three years. Candidates who have not yet graduated should note that completion of the degree in the year of applying is a condition of the Award.

The object of the Award is to assist graduates in political science to build on their study by spending time working in or with, visiting, observing or experiencing political institutions, governments, research centres or other organisations involved in the political process in any country or state outside Western Australia.

The award is valued at $8000.00. This sum may be awarded to one or to two individuals at the discretion of the Patrick O'Brien Political Science Graduate Internship Committee. The award must be taken up within twelve months of the offer being made.

Recipients of the Internship to date are:

2007: Enrico Burgio and Karolina Koszelski

Enrico Burgio completed his internship with Per Capita, a left liberal public policy 'think tank' with offices in Sydney and Melbourne.

Karolina Koszelski completed her internship at the US-Iranian Council in 2008. During her internship Karolina undertook research on US-Iranian relations as reflected in or influenced by the mass media.

2006: Sky Croeser and Raphael de Vietri

Sky Croeser undertook her internship with The Green Foundation in India early in 2007.

Raphael de Vietri completed his internship with the Centre for Strategic Studies, a government think-tank located within Mali's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

2005: Rachael Young

Rachael completed her internship with the South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre in New Delhi, India. The internship offered Rachael the opportunity to examine, from the point of view of a non-governmental organisation, the extent to which states must uphold international norms and the difficulties states faced complying with these norms.

2004: Daniel Vujcich

Daniel undertook his internship as a Strategic Policy and Advocacy Advisor for the Consultative Implementation and Monitoring Council in Papua New Guinea.

2003: Lorraine van der Ende and Alistair Warren

Lorraine van der Ende undertook her internship with The Leadership Institute in the U.S. During her internship Lorraine completed a program of training in political philosophy and interacted, in structured forums, with leaders from Congress, the judiciary and major public policy organizations.

Alistair Warren undertook his internship with the Global Policy Forum in New York, USA.

2002: Jennifer Barton

Jennifer undertook her internship with the One Economy Corporation, a not-for-profit lobby group in Washington D.C. Working at One Economy provided Jennifer with knowledge about the techniques of lobby groups on Capitol Hill and the role of such groups in the American policy process.

2001: Daniel Clery

Daniel travelled to Edinburgh to take up his internship with the Scottish Parliament where he examined the operation of this new legislature.

2000: Verity Wright

Verity was the inaugural recipient of the award and spent her internship with the Australian Centre for Cooperative Research and Development (ACCORD) in Sydney, where she investigated aspects of the non-government service sector in Australia.

Details of the internship are mailed to eligible graduates and completing students in July each year. For more information have a look at the regulations or email Political.Science @uwa.edu.au.