U.S. Senator Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, is seeking Iowa college students of all majors interested in working in any of his seven offices.

According to a press release, interns are selected to work during two six-week sessions in Grassley’s Washington office. Positions are also available in each of the six Iowa offices he maintains for “constituent services and casework.”

Scott Stanzel, assistant press secretary for Grassley, said casework includes any instance when “an Iowan needs help [in dealing] with a federal agency.”

Interns in Grassley’s Capitol Hill office are assigned to permanent staff members who are responsible for legislation, constituent services, media relations or administrative work.

Although interns in Grassley’s Iowa offices aren’t involved in the lawmaking process, Washington interns will have that opportunity, Stanzel said. Interns may go to committee hearings, legislative briefings or may do research on a particular bill, he said.

“These internships are terrific opportunities for college students to gain work experience while learning about the legislative branch of our federal government,” Grassley said in a press release.

Stanzel, a 1995 Iowa State graduate, was an intern during the summer of 1994, between his junior and senior years in college.

He was hired as an assistant press secretary and has worked in Grassley’s Washington office since January 1997.

He said he chose the summer internship to gain a better grasp of the government and how it works.

“I came away with a greater understanding of the process of government,” he said.

In a press release, Grassley said summer interns also have a wide array of opportunities, including attending Congressional hearings, informational briefings at the Library of Congress and lectures given by members of Congress and the Supreme Court.

Stanzel said the summer internships are unpaid. Grassley also offers internships during fall and spring semesters, which may be paid depending on the budget, he said.

Grassley’s Iowa offices are located in Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Sioux City and Waterloo.

Application forms for internships are available on the Web at www.senate.gov/grassley/intern.html, in the placement offices of Iowa colleges and universities or in Grassley’s Iowa offices.

An application may be obtained by writing to Senator Charles Grassley, 135 Senate Hart Office Building, Washington, D. C. 20510-1501, He can also be reached e-mailing the senator at [email protected].