Entry Level Jobs In Politics
If you’re looking for an entry-level job in politics, there are lots of great opportunities out there. You’ll find them in government offices and political organizations, as well as in non-governmental organizations (NGOs). It’s important to know what you want to do when you start your career, because it will help you narrow down the options and make a more informed decision about where you apply.
Types Of Entry Level Jobs In Politics
Some of the most common types of entry level jobs in politics include:
Campaign Manager: Campaign managers are responsible for leading candidate’s campaigns from start to finish. They handle planning, organizing events and rallies, fundraising, advertising and media relations. They manage staff and volunteers who work on behalf of their candidate during elections. Campaign managers may also work with pollsters and consultants to strategize how best to get their candidate elected.
Public Relations Specialist: Public relations specialists work with politicians or political groups at all levels of government—from local municipalities up through national governments—to help them communicate with constituents through public appearances, social media posts or press conferences. They also coordinate media coverage so that it’s favorable towards their clients’ causes or actions; this could mean pitching stories or arranging interviews.
Entry Level Jobs In Politics
1. Social media intern
National average salary: $30,672 per year
Primary duties: A social media intern helps to run the social media accounts for individual clients and organizations. Social media interns can work closely with social media managers to learn about the nuances of the job, create social media content to post on different platforms and collaborating with other team members to develop ideas for new content. A social media intern with a political science major might work on the marketing team for a politician or other professional in politics or government.
2. Legislative assistant
National average salary: $40,625 per year
Primary duties: A legislative assistant helps legislators when they create the documentation for new laws. Legislative assistants can review and edit written legislation and memos to ensure they’re accurate, perform research on legal topics to learn more about the need for new laws, and create drafts for legislative resolutions and memorials. A legislative assistant can also perform administrative tasks like answering phone calls, organizing schedules and supervising interns at work.
Related: How To Become a Legislative Assistant
3. Junior research analyst
National average salary: $46,305 per year
Primary duties: A junior research analyst helps conduct research on an organization’s operations in order to find ways to improve its performance. Junior research analysts can perform tasks under the instruction of a research analyst or the manager of a research team, identify trends in the market and consumer performance that can inform new operations at a company and analyze data to determine how an organization can enhance its performance according to consumer habits and market trends. In political science, a junior research analyst might work on a political campaign and help candidates secure votes using the information they find.
4. Staff assistant
National average salary: $48,464 per year
Primary duties: A staff assistant supports a team by performing administrative and other types of tasks that a supervisor assigns to them. Staff assistants can have duties like organizing client schedules, retrieving data and files from databases or archives and answering questions from the public or other staff members. Most staff assistants who work in political science find positions on electoral campaigns or with government agencies where they can use their general expertise to help in a wide variety of areas.
5. Public Relations Assistant
National average salary: $48,591 per year
Primary duties: A public relations assistant helps other public relations professionals to create and maintain the public image of individual clients and organizations. Their job can involve creating promotional materials for clients, answering phone calls from existing or prospective clients and distributing materials to the public through various channels, such as email newsletters or social media posts. Public relations assistants can also facilitate communication between clients and the public relations manager by setting meetings and sharing messages.
6. Political consultant
National average salary: $49,471 per year
Primary duties: A political consultant works on political campaigns to contribute to the public image and success of political candidates. Political consultants can facilitate communication between political candidates and the public by distributing memos and press releases, maintain a candidate’s public image by overseeing their public relations and social media accounts and develop strategies for fundraising efforts to support campaigns, such as hosting special events or reaching out directly to potential donors. A political consultant can also conduct research on opposing candidates to determine what steps they can take to surpass them.
7. Paralegal
National average salary: $50,441 per year
Primary duties: A paralegal is a law professional who helps lawyers prepare cases for trial. Paralegals can have many responsibilities, such as writing drafts of legal documents that lawyers ask for, conducting research on active cases by examining evidence and files and gathering evidence for cases, like affidavits and statements from witnesses. A paralegal can also maintain the records for both ongoing and resolved cases by organizing and storing files.
Related: Learn About Being a Paralegal
8. Market researcher
National average salary: $56,638 per year
Primary duties: A market researcher collects and analyzes data on a particular market or industry. Market researchers can conduct research on a certain market to learn about its consumers and competitors, develop proposals for new research projects that can help people reach creative solutions for challenges in the market and prepare reports so they can share their findings with other team members and the public. In political science, market researchers might focus on learning about a specific political party or perform duties that contribute to an election campaign.
9. Management consultant
National average salary: $81,586 per year
Primary duties: A management consultant helps businesses by evaluating their operations and offering advice about how to improve their management processes. Management consultants can meet with managers and other company leaders to learn about the management style currently in place, review company data to gain insight into a company’s performance and make recommendations for how a company can enhance their management, which can typically improve overall performance. In political science, a management consultant might work with campaign managers or leaders at political or government offices.
10. Policy analyst
National average salary: $84,768 per year
Primary duties: A policy analyst helps to develop new government policies by evaluating current policies and finding ways to improve. Their job can involve conducting research on existing policies to determine which might need revision or amendments, meeting with stakeholders and government agencies to discuss the need for new policies in particular areas of government and finding evidence to support the new policies they create. Policy analysts can also find solutions to specific challenges that arise from the public, such as a demand for increased regulations.
11. Law associate
National average salary: $87,111 per year
Primary duties: A law associate is an entry-level attorney who offers legal advice and can represent clients in cases. Law associates can meet with clients to discuss the details of specific cases, represent their clients in trials and court meetings before judges and conduct extensive research on each case they take to ensure they have all necessary evidence and contextual information.
