The Washington Program

Students from all five colleges - Claremont McKenna, Pomona, Scripps, Harvey Mudd, and Pitzer - are welcome to apply to the Washington Program. These internships provide a unique opportunity to become a valued team member at major Washington D.C. institutions, international organizations and foreign embassies. Past participants have interned at the White House, in congressional offices, federal agencies, embassies, major non-profit organizations, and top news outlets. 

Through the Washington Program, students gain work experience interfacing with congressional staffers, lobbyists, non-profit professionals, and other Washington insiders. The city is also a hub for international exchange, the economy, history, arts, and culture,  and Claremont interns dive deep into these aspects of the capital.

For many, the experience is transformative. Alumni of the CMC Washington Program have gone on to hold elected office as well as to become White House correspondents and leaders at federal agencies and think tanks. Many have also become entrepreneurs and business executives thanks to leadership and political skills they gained in the Program.

Program Structure

The Washington Program is built around three major components running in parallel:

• A professional internship
• Academic coursework
• A full calendar of forums, networking events, tours, and excursions  

The professional internship is at the heart of the program. Because our students work five days a week, they are treated as regular junior staff and quickly become trusted team members in their respective institutions or agencies. This full-time presence distinguishes Claremont interns from most others.

Washington Program participants take academic courses alongside their internships. The curriculum consists of two seminars: Government 128: Power, Politics, and Persuasion in Washington; and Government 126(B): Problems in Public Policy. They also receive course credit for the internship (Government 30: Internship in Politics) and complete an independent study (Government 127: Washington Research Project).

Through a series of forums, classroom visits, and networking events organized by Washington Program staff, participants interact with current and former members of Congress, diplomats, federal judges, scholars, media professionals, and high-level government officials. The Washington Program also hosts excursions to historical sites, such as Mount Vernon and Gettysburg, and arranges tours of the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, the National Archives and various federal agencies. 

Claremont students from all five colleges, regardless of their major, are welcome to apply to the CMC Washington Program.

The DC Athenaeum is a recent addition to the Washington Program. It provides one more opportunity for Claremont students to meet outstanding professionals, scholars, policymakers and influencers. As its model, the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum on the CMC campus, it also promotes intellectual and social exchange among students, alumni, scholars, Washington insiders and the public at large.