Before many college students vote in their first presidential election Nov. 7, several UC Davis students already find themselves in the thick of the upcoming elections. Through the Department of Political Science and UC Davis' Washington Center, students are gaining insights into the workings of campaigns and elections as they intern with organizations ranging from the Democratic and Republican national committees to congressional and state Senate campaigns to the California Voter Foundation. Senior Vanessa Derr, who plans on a career in law, is helping the California Democratic Party's campaign office in Sacramento to monitor the number of Democrats and Republicans registering to vote. "This internship has helped me to get an inside view on politics," she says. An interest in water politics led senior Tyree Nagai to intern with the campaign to elect Democratic candidate Mike Machado to the 5th District of the state Senate. She has worked on a phone bank, put up campaign signs, helped organize fund-raising events, pulled together the election-night party and rubbed shoulders with leaders in the Asian American community. "The hours go by so fast it doesn't seem like you've been at the office for nine hours, more like you're helping to make California a better place to live in the future," she says. Each quarter of the regular academic year, about 45 juniors and seniors majoring in political science intern in varied settings including the offices of elected officials, government, interest groups and nongovernmental agencies. About 10 students intern each summer. The students work a minimum of 15 hours a week, prepare a written evaluation of their experience, submit their supervisor's evaluation and complete a writing assignment to earn academic credit. Through the internships of the Washington Center, 25 to 40 juniors and seniors each quarter work with a variety of organizations in and around the nation's capital, from museums and archives to Congress and media outlets.