Next Gen Service Corps

As part of the Next Gen Service Corps Network, the La Follette School connects undergraduate students to learning and career opportunities across the country. Staff and faculty from Network schools share lessons and insights about ways to support students in achieving their goals in public service careers.

475 UW–Madison undergraduate students are enrolled in our certificates in public policy and health policy as of spring 2024. With support from the Volcker Alliance, La Follette graduate project assistants Francis Amedoadzi and Owen Jonas joined our team to support this initiative. They are helping to build out current and future options for students to gain applied and field experiences in public policy and health policy.

As the La Follette School moves toward the launch of a new major in public policy in 2025–26, we are analyzing best practices and our students’ experiences to shape dynamic, sustainable options for field experiences. Currently, certificate students complete internships as part of their required 12-credit coursework. We are learning from their experiences about promising ways to ensure applied learning can advance their options in public service and plan to share these lessons with Next Gen Network schools.