The Employer:

• Provides the labor and skill needed to complete a special project or task
• Provides the opportunity for staff to gain supervision experience
• Reduces recruitment cost for future positions
• Increases name recognition of the city or department at colleges and universities
• Allows employers to gain insight on current topics at the collegiate level
• Allows the assessment of the capacities and capabilities of a potential employee
• Brings in fresh perspectives and highly motivated workers
• Increases access to minority candidates
• Succession planning: provides exposure to local government service for the next generation of the professional workforce

The Intern:

• Opportunity to apply knowledge gained from the academic setting
• Ability to observe various roles and jobs in the public sector
• Opportunity to gain valuable experience that provides evidence of skills and abilities
• Increased confidence in work produced
• Making professional networking contacts
• Potential to earn school credit for work completed
• Ability to gain industry knowledge and "real-world" experience in local government/public service