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Internships

General Information

The United States Pretrial Services and Probation Office for the Northern District of Ohio has a formal internship program and seeks diversity in participants. Generally, we seek undergraduate and post-graduate students majoring/minoring in criminal justice, the social sciences and other related fields of study. Our goal is to provide students with hands-on experience in the three facets of probation: pretrial services, presentence investigation, and post conviction supervision. The probation office will provide students with as much exposure to each aspect of probation as possible during the internship assignment. There may also be involvement in special projects, but always under the direction of an officer, in an office setting in one of our four offices.

Internships are available in the following locations:

Cleveland
Akron
Toledo
Youngstown

The goal of this program is to allow students to attain individual work experience and fulfill school requirements, while also providing services to the U.S. Pretrial Services and Probation Office. Interns may receive academic credit if an agreement is made between the Probation Department and the intern’s college or university.

 

Qualifications

Students attending a four- year accredited college/university
Senior or junior at the time of application
Must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 or above
Must be in good standing with the college or university
Must commit to completing 16-24 hours per week, during a 15 week period (unpaid positions)
Subject to a background investigation/credit check

 

Application Process

Interested individuals should forward a resume and cover letter, as well as three references, to the following address:

Internship Program
U.S. Pretrial Services and Probation Office
Northern District of Ohio
801 W. Superior Avenue, Suite 3-100
Cleveland, Ohio 44113

Qualified candidates will receive an application packet in the mail.

If a student meets the minimum requirements and there is an opening for an intern, a personal interview will be scheduled. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

 

Application Deadlines

Internships are offered during the Summer, Fall, and Winter/Spring semesters.

Summer program: applications must be postmarked by March 15
Fall program: applications must be postmarked by June 15
Winter/Spring program: applications must be postmarked by November 15

 

Internship Duties

Interns will undergo orientation at the Probation Office, which will be conducted by the Internship Coordinator and a Supervising United States Probation Officer.

 

Intern Responsibilities

  • Assist probation officers in the performance of his or her duties under the direction and supervision of the Probation Officer and Supervising Probation Officer
  • Adhere to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees (A copy will be provided to the intern during orientation)
  • Maintain confidentiality, interns are required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement
  • Report on time for work at the Courthouse
  • Student interns will observe pretrial interviews, presentence interviews, in-office visits, and Court hearings
  • Student interns are urged to attend staff meetings on days when they are performing internship duties
  • Student interns will work on special projects for Reentry Court, Workforce Development and the Life Skills Program
  • Conduct criminal history inquires with local police departments
  • Assist with collateral investigations
  • Assist with researching information for presentence reports
  • Maintain a log/checklist to be reviewed by the Internship Coordinator
  • All research papers or other academic work completed by the student intern, which identify the Probation Office will be shared with the Probation Office
  • Students experiencing any problems in the intern program should address the issues with the Internship Coordinator
  • Complete an evaluation regarding the internship experience

 

Interns Will Not

  • Conduct field work
  • Sign any document relating to any function of the Probation Office without an approving signature of a Probation Officer
  • Release confidential information
  • Be responsible for the completion of a presentence report
  • Supervise a caseload

 

For additional information about the U.S. Pretrial Services and Probation Internship Program, please contact Intern Coordinator Brad Schleter at (216) 357-7312.