Paid Student Mediator Internship for Undergrad, $15/hr
Division of Regional Affairs
Consumer Frauds Team –Albany
Student Mediator
Reference No. DRA/CRT_ALB_PUGS_2022
Application Deadline is October 14, 2022
Paid, Part-Time Placement for Undergraduate Students
The Consumer Frauds Team that is overseen by the Division of Regional Affairs and located in Albany is seeking an undergraduate student to serve as a student mediator for pay. The office prosecutes businesses and individuals engaged in fraudulent, misleading, deceptive or illegal trade practices. In addition to litigating, the office mediates thousands of complaints each year from individual consumers. The student will mediate individual complaints filed by consumers against businesses, answer inquiries from the public on a variety of topics, and support investigations into larger patterns of fraud or illegality.
Mediation is an informal process where we act as a neutral third party and attempt to assist consumers and businesses in resolving disputes on a voluntary basis. A large percentage of these complaints are resolved satisfactorily through this process. The student will be assigned a docket of complaint files covering a broad range of consumer issues including retail sales, mail order transactions, credit transactions, telemarketing, warranty problems, home repair and automobiles.
The student will learn interviewing techniques and have the opportunity to develop analytical skills. While each complaint is reviewed by an employee, the student typically exercises significant discretion and independent judgment. Professional staff and attorneys are always available to answer questions. The position affords the student an unusual degree of responsibility and requires the student to display excellent judgment.
The student mediator will also answer phone inquiries from the public. When the call is related to a consumer matter, the student will assist the caller in filing a complaint and explaining our mediation program. We also receive calls on a range of topics that are not appropriate for our mediation program. In those instances, the student will help those callers find the best assistance possible elsewhere. Extensive and ongoing phone training is provided, and the student receives support and coaching from permanent staff. The student will develop excellent communication skills, including effectively and productively handling conversations with dissatisfied callers.
Applicants must be articulate, analytical, creative and organized. No specific experience is required.
Placement Details
- This is an in-person placement, which means the student must be available to report to the office in Albany, New York on their designated workdays. Since the student working in this format will have an in-office presence, confirmation of their vaccination status is required. If the student is not fully vaccinated, they may be required to provide regular negative COVID-19 PCR tests at a frequency determined by the agency. The agency will consider religious and reasonable accommodations. For more information, please contact recruitment@ag.ny.gov.
- Applications from students entering their first year of college/university during the 2022 fall semester will not be considered.
- To be eligible for a paid placement, applicants must be able to demonstrate they are full-time undergraduate students in good academic standing as defined by their schools.
- Applicants must be available to work 15 hours per week during regular business hours for the entire fall semester (approx. 12 weeks). Students who are available to work the entire 2022-23 academic year (fall, spring and summer terms) are strongly preferred. Please be advised reappointment for additional terms is neither automatic nor guaranteed.
- The selected candidate will be hired as a student assistant and paid hourly at the undergraduate student rate, which is 15.00.
- U.S. citizenship and NYS residency are not required, but applicants must be eligible to be employed in the U.S.
- Applications will be accepted online and this placement will be filled on a rolling basis.
- Applicants must be available by video conference for interviews.
- Applicants are encouraged to learn more about the OAG prior to submitting their applications by visiting the Divisions and Bureaus and Media sections of the OAG website.
How to Apply
The following section provides detailed information about the application process and application requirements. Please review the complete list of instructions prior to preparing and submitting your application materials online.
· Applications for paid fall placements are being received online. To apply, please click on the following link:
· Applications are submitted separately for each bureau/regional office, and an applicant’s candidacy for each application is determined separately by each bureau/regional office.
· The following documents are required for each application that is submitted:
(Click on the document name to learn more)
1. Cover Letter
- Address to the Legal Recruitment Unit, 28 Liberty Street, New York, NY, 10005
- Indicate why you are interested in a placement with the OAG and what makes you a strong candidate.
- Indicate your availability and preferred work schedule.
2. Resume
- Ensure your resume is complete and current prior to submitting your application.
3. List of three (3) references.
- Submit only professional (i.e., supervisor or professor) references.
- Indicate the nature and duration of your relationship to each reference.
- Include contact information and email addresses for each reference.
- Please note, your references will not be contacted until after you interview for the placement.
- You may choose to submit a paper that you completed for school or a writing sample that you produced during an internship or externship.
- Submit a sample that demonstrates your ability to analyze and organize information into an effective document.
· Failure to submit a complete application will delay the consideration of your candidacy.
· Please submit your application for a fall placement at least three (3) weeks prior to any deadlines that could impact your candidacy and note this in your cover letter.
· Please allow at least three (3) weeks for your application to be processed and reviewed by the hiring bureau/regional office. You may submit an application status request by clicking here.
If you have questions about a placement with the OAG, the application process or need assistance with submitting your application, please contact Legal Recruitment via email at recruitment@ag.ny.gov.