Internship Location: Madison WI
Organization Type: State Government
Policy Areas: Performance Evaluation
This summer I interned in the performance evaluation division at the Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau. The Legislative Audit Bureau is a nonpartisan service agency for the legislative branch which conducts audits as assigned by the joint audit committee or as outlined in statutes. The reports are used to inform the legislators on the performance of executive branch agencies. I was assigned to work on a team as part of an audit of the election administrations in the state. In this role, I was given similar responsibilities as the first-year analysts including researching, both qualitative and quantitative analysis, interviewing subject-matter experts, and conducting file reviews. This position also involved writing workpapers to document the processes and discuss any potential findings. Additionally, I attended multiple training sessions that detailed the different processes used when conducting performance audits and was given the opportunity to conduct multiple pieces of fieldwork. My internship at the Legislative Audit Bureau provided me with an invaluable, first-hand look at nonpartisan work and how to conduct performance evaluations. The facts-driven analysis is based on what is laid out in statute and provides a clear look at how the agency is running and where improvements could be made. The reports produced by the Legislative Audit Bureau are respected by legislators on both sides of the aisle, so this position has a unique ability to have an impact on the programs under evaluation.