Rose Conway-Walsh
Question:4. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Taoiseach to outline the internships, apprenticeships and graduate schemes run by his Department and public bodies under the aegis of his Department. [35496/23]
View answerTuesday, 25 July 2023
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The Department of the Taoiseach is committed to grow apprenticeships and graduate opportunities across the Public and Civil Service. The Department is supporting cross-Government work led by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, to develop a Public Sector Apprenticeship Recruitment Plan with sectoral targets for the recruitment of apprentices by public service bodies.
The Department does not currently provide internships for students in full-time or part-time further and higher education courses. However, the Department actively participates in AHEAD’s Willing, Able, Mentoring (WAM) Programme which facilitates paid work experience of six months for graduates with disabilities.
The Department employs staff at Administrative Officer level, who are offered and encouraged to participate in the Civil Service Graduate Development Programme which is led by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP, Delivery and Reform. The Department also recruits Graduate Policy Analyst/Economist via the Irish Government Economic & Evaluation Service (IGEES) programme lead by the IGEES Unit in the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP, Delivery and Reform.
The National Economic and Social Development Office (NESDO), the only body under the aegis of the Department, has offered up to four internships each year since 2020 to 3rd and 4th year undergraduate students studying social policy in Trinity College Dublin and students undertaking a Masters in Public Policy in UCD.