Coe College

Student Opportunities

Mitchell Lincoln '09 had an internship in Senator Harkin's D.C. office in spring 2007.

Off-Campus Opportunities

Coe has a Washington Term Program in which political science students are encouraged to participate. It involves living in Washington, D.C. for the entire fall term and taking a first-hand observer course in American government and a part-time internship--usually in a governmental or interest group office.

Other off-campus programs are well-suited to political science majors, including ACM* programs in Chicago, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, and Botswana.

Internships, either full-time or part-time, are also possible in other locations. Past examples include working in local government offices in Maine and Iowa, presidential campaigns, a U.S. senator's office, the Illinois and Iowa legislatures, and the local office of legal assistance.

* The ACM (Associated Colleges of the Midwest) is an educational consortium to which Coe belongs.

Student Research

Coe's political science majors have many opportunities to conduct their own research projects such as writing a senior thesis, presenting work at an intercollegiate political science conference, participating in Coe's student research symposium, or preparing for a national Model United Nations simulation.

• Recent senior thesis topics include: the 2004 Spanish general election, female politicians in France and the United States, impact of the No Child Left Behind Act, traditional and national government in Cameroon, and US health care policy making.
• The varied topics of projects presented by political science students at the student symposium include women and democracy, the portrayal of Che Guevara in film and society, and the role of religion in rebuilding Iraq.
• The Coe Model United Nations club has participated in the Mid-West Model United Nations in St. Louis and the American Model United Nations in Chicago. Club members have represented the governments of Algeria and Mauritania.

Dr. Bruce Nesmith accompanied four Coe students to the 2009 Midwest Political Science Undergraduate Research Conference held at Buena Vista University. Presenting their research were: Mitchell Lincoln '09, Johanna Schnell '09, Sam Haraway '09, and Kevin Dyrland '10.