Internship mentors are typically from the most senior levels in their organizations and provide direction and guidance to the interns. Mentors will design and monitor the placement to ensure it is rewarding and meaningful for both the mentor and intern. Additionally, the mentor is encouraged and available to share their knowledge and experience.

Prior to the start of the internship, a Mentor Orientation is hosted by the school. Additionally, mentors should be guided by the Mentorship Handbook (see Resources and Forms). JSGS encourages a 1/3 – 1/3 – 1/3 breakdown in activities as follows:

• Interns are tasked with one substantive, meaningful project aligned with the intern's interests;
• Interns will shadow the mentor in meetings, planning sessions, and other applicable experiences; and
• Interns are involved in additional areas of the host organization.

Mentors will expose interns to as many areas of the organization as possible. Periodic meetings with the intern will ensure the intern is learning the practical hows and whys of organizational processes and decision-making and ensure the internship is progressing well.

Below is useful information regarding the Executive Internship Program Cycle to help you prepare for hiring JSGS executive interns!

Applicants to the JSGS Executive Internship Program must be current (not graduated) MPA students with a minimum 75 percent average. They must also have completed at least 50 percent of their program by the time the internship placement begins.

To apply, students are required to submit an application package that includes a completed cover checklist, a professional resume, personal biography, a cover letter, and JSGS faculty references. Students who meet required academic standards will be invited to participate in a timed briefing note exercise and an interview to further assess their competencies. The internal interview panel typically consists of members of JSGS faculty and staff. Candidates who make it past the internal interviews successfully may be invited for an external interview with a prospective mentor.

Internal interviews are scheduled for the end of February or the start of March.

Once contracts are signed, the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School invoices the partner organization $30,000 at the beginning of each eight-month internship. The partner organization is then responsible for paying either the school’s University of Regina or the University of Saskatchewan campus (identified on the invoice). The school then provides monthly compensation to each intern in the form of a scholarship.

Federal interns are compensated at an hourly rate of pay determined by the employer.

If you are interested in becoming a partnering organization and mentoring a JSGS Executive Intern, we ask that you complete the Intern Request Form (see Resources) and submit it to JSGS’s Student Experience Officer by February 15^th.

The form will consist of the following information:

• Contact information
• Designated Mentor and Back-up Mentor
• Number of interns requested
• If you would like to interview a few candidates or have JSGS match you to a specific intern
• Mentors will expose interns to as many areas of the organization as possible. Weekly meetings with the intern will ensure the intern is learning the practical hows and whys of organizational processes and decision-making, and ensuring the internship is progressing well. Please describe how the intern would be involved in these processes within your organization
• Please outline potential project options the intern will be assigned to, noting that specific assignment of projects will be determined at the time of placement, based on the intern’s knowledge, skills and interests.
• What qualities are you looking for in an intern (ie: knowledge of government or private sector, leadership, analysis and problem solving, interpersonal relations, organizational, communication, skills in research, preparing presentations, personality types, etc.)

If you have questions about the program, please contact js_internship@uregina.ca