Public Affairs Information For Graduates

How do I get into Public Affairs?

There are various routes into public affairs with some joining the industry straight from university and others joining from a related profession later on in their careers. Many public affairs practitioners have a degree in politics or a closely related subject but it is also advantageous to back this up with work placements or internships. These can be taken in MP/MSP/MEP offices, with political consultancies or in a campaigning organisation. For those who support a specific political party, a good way to gain experience is to volunteer for the party, supporting a local candidate or working in their national communication teams. Many placements or internships are not advertised publicly - work out a list of some organisations you'd like to work for and target your covering letter and CV accordingly. Do this early, and if possible, offer to work unpaid for a few months. The most important thing is to get your foot on the public affairs ladder.

Many large political consultancies have graduate programmes that last for six to twelve months. These introduce graduates to the basic political processes, the forms of communication which are used in politics and teach client relationship skills. Graduates will often be expected to conduct research for more experienced consultants which is an excellent way for them to work across several sectors and decide which areas or issues they are most interested in working on in the future. Most consultancies may expect candidates to have some relevant experience, either through work experience or from an involvement in student politics.

Graduate Recruitment

Many organisations 'regularly recruit graduate trainees'. This may be at different times of the year, or even on an ad-hoc basis. Below is an alphabetic list of organisations that offer graduate opportunities. For more information, click on the company links and contact them directly. Visit the Current Vacancies for details of available jobs.

If you would like to include your organisation’s details please contact PubAffairs.

• APCO UK
• Bellenden Graduate Programme
• Bell Pottinger Public Affairs
• Camargue
• Cavendish Place Communications
• Cicero
• Communiqué
• Connect Public Affairs
• DLA Piper Global Government Relations
• Edelman
• FD Public Affairs
• Fishburn Hedges
• Geronimo Communications
• Good Relations
• Green Issues Communications
• Hill & Knowlton
• Indigo Public Affairs
• Mandate Communications
• PoliticsDirect
• PPS Group
• Quintus Public Affairs
• Saffron Chase
• Weber Shandwick
• Waterfront Public Affairs