State of Colorado Internship 2027–2028: Deadlines & How to Apply

Last updated: November 2026

This guide is about working for Colorado's state government, its departments and the General Assembly, not Colorado State University. There's no single State of Colorado internship. Each department posts its own on one shared NEOGOV board, governmentjobs.com/careers/colorado. On November 12, 2026 that board listed 473 openings: 10 had "intern" in the title, and 9 of those were open to students. Pay runs from unpaid, for academic credit (the CBI forensic lab and Legislative Legal Services) to $25.50 an hour at the top of CDOT's summer 2026 engineering range. One summer 2027 posting is already open, the CBI Forensic Services internship, and it closes January 15, 2027. Most paid summer roles went up between January and April last cycle. In plain words: you apply between now and spring 2027, and you intern in summer 2027.

Quick Facts

The row that matters most: the one summer 2027 posting open now (CBI forensic) closes January 15, 2027, and the paid summer postings are expected from January 2027.

While the paid summer postings are still weeks away, Externships are short, remote projects you finish for a real organization, most often in 8 weeks at 5 to 10 hours a week. The SQL & Database Architecture Externship with Breaking Games builds the SQL work in CDOT's engineering posting, and Health Research & Data Analytics with ARCeH builds the data analysis and science writing that Parks and Wildlife and CBI postings ask for. Explore all Externships.

What Is a State of Colorado Internship?

A State of Colorado internship is a paid or unpaid student placement with a Colorado state department or the General Assembly, mostly in Denver. There's no statewide program: departments recruit their own interns on the state's NEOGOV board. Departments that posted student internships in the 2026 and 2027 cycles include the Office of the Governor, the Department of Transportation (CDOT), the Department of Public Safety and its Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) and the General Assembly's Office of Legislative Legal Services. The Department of Local Affairs runs Best and Brightest, which places high-school and undergraduate interns, plus graduate fellows, with local governments. There the local government is the employer, and the high-school internships are for high-school students only. Some board titles aren't student internships: "Trainee" and apprentice-level roles are entry-level jobs, and the Gaming Casino Audit Intern role asks for four years of audit experience or a CPA or CIA.

When Do State of Colorado Internship Applications Open for 2027–2028?

Colorado has no single application season. Each department posts on its own schedule, so read the dates track by track. For summer 2026, CDOT's engineering internship was posted from January 5 to March 31, 2026, about four months before a May start. The Governor's Office summer posting ran March 20 to April 10, 2026, but the year before it ran January 31 to February 26, 2025. That window moved about seven weeks in one year, so we treat that projection as low-confidence. CBI's forensic lab posted early, on October 1, 2026, for an early-June 2027 start, a lead of about 8 months. We expect most paid postings for summer 2027 to open between January and April 2027. The Governor's Executive Internship also runs fall and spring sessions through a form on its own page: the spring 2026 application closed December 5, 2025, and the fall 2026 one closed August 7, 2026.

How to read this page: our dates come from tracking previous recruiting cycles and daily posting data. Treat them as informed estimates based on historical patterns, not confirmed dates. The company's official careers page is always the most current source. If a role is posted there, go by that, even if this page suggests the window hasn't opened yet.

Why You Must Apply the Week Applications Open

Two different clocks run here. CBI's forensic posting has a hard deadline: applications for summer 2027 close January 15, 2027 at 5:00 PM Mountain Time, and its background steps (polygraph, drug test, fingerprints) must be done before the start. The paid summer postings are short windows. The Governor's Office posting was open three weeks in 2026 (March 20 to April 10) and under four weeks in 2025, and CDOT's Property Management posting ran two weeks, April 20 to May 3, 2026. The board gives no single signal that summer hiring has started, so a job alert per department is what tells you a window is open.

Which State of Colorado Internship Programs Should You Target?

These are the main doors, with details from each posting on the state's NEOGOV board or the department's own page. Past postings are labelled with their cycle.

Other routes: CDOT's Property Management Intern ($23.50/hr in 2026, a statewide building inventory in ArcGIS Pro with overnight travel), and Public Safety divisions such as Criminal Justice, Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and the Colorado Information Analysis Center, which the department says are unpaid unless noted. DOLA's Best and Brightest program places interns with local governments, which recruit the candidates themselves.

What Are the Eligibility Requirements?

Rules differ by posting. These come from the state's own postings and department pages, read in November 2026.

• Enrollment: CDOT takes any student at an accredited community college, college or university, a graduate within three calendar years, or someone who has passed the FE exam. CBI wants current associate's, bachelor's or master's students in a hard science who stay enrolled for a term after. Legislative Legal Services takes 2L and 3L law students only.

• Residency: most postings say applications "will be considered from residents and non-residents of Colorado." The Governor's Office posting says that too, but adds that you must live in Colorado at the time of employment. DOLA's graduate fellows must be Colorado residents.

• Academic credit: Public Safety says all its internships "must be taken for college/university credit," and they're unpaid unless the posting says otherwise. Legislative Legal Services is strictly for credit.

• Background checks: the Governor's Office runs a background check. CBI requires a polygraph, an exam, a drug test, fingerprints and a DNA swab. The Colorado Information Analysis Center requires a background investigation and polygraph.

• Driving: CDOT and Parks and Wildlife field roles require a valid driver's license to drive state vehicles.

Is There a GPA Cutoff?

Not on the postings we read. None of the seven internship postings we read in full set a GPA minimum. What screens people out is paperwork and fit: CDOT warns that "See Resume" answers may not be accepted and asks for transcripts when you use education to qualify, and the Governor's Office asks for a one-page writing sample answering a prompt.

What Skills Does the State of Colorado Look For, and How Do You Build Them?

We read seven of the state's internship postings in full: the Governor's Office, two CDOT roles plus CDOT's 2023 bridge posting, CBI forensic, CPW River Watch and Legislative Legal Services. Writing comes up in four, and the Governor's Office wants "Excellent writing, communication, and proofreading skills". Data work is in four too, from CDOT's "perform statistical analysis" to CPW's "Data management, analysis, and scientific data communication". Four roles involve field work or driving a state vehicle. The technical asks are narrow and role-specific: SQL at CDOT, ArcGIS Pro for CDOT's property inventory, and R Shiny at CPW River Watch.

How Is Demand for Policy Interns Moving Right Now?

Build These Skills Before You Apply

Each skill below comes from the state's own postings and maps to a remote Externship you can finish before the January postings.

No open Externship teaches bridge inspection or forensic lab work. For those roles, a finished data project still shows the analysis and reporting the postings ask for.

What Is the State of Colorado Application and Interview Process Like?

Every department runs its own hiring, but most use the same NEOGOV application.

1. Find the posting. Search the state board and read titles by department. "Trainee" and apprentice-level titles are entry-level jobs, not internships.

2. Fill in the full NEOGOV application. CDOT warns that "See Resume" answers may not be accepted, and asks for transcripts when you use education to qualify.

3. Attach what the posting asks for. The Governor's Office wants a cover letter, resume and one-page writing sample responding to a prompt. CBI wants a cover letter, resume, unofficial transcript and an academic or professional recommendation letter.

4. Interview and clear the checks. Departments interview on their own schedule. The Governor's Office runs a background check, and CBI's polygraph, drug test and fingerprints happen in person before the start.

5. For the Governor's fall or spring sessions, apply through the form on the program page, not the job board.

No department publishes an acceptance rate or applicant count.

What Law Students on Reddit Say

We found no Reddit discussion of the Governor's Office, CDOT or Parks and Wildlife internships. The threads we read in full are about the Office of the Colorado State Public Defender, a state agency, and its internships for law students only.

How Do You Stand Out for a State of Colorado Internship?

First, be ready the week a posting appears. Windows are set department by department and some last two or three weeks, so job alerts and a drafted cover letter matter most in December and January. Second, complete the application in full. CDOT may not accept "See Resume" answers, and the Governor's Office scores a writing sample, so write to the prompt. Third, sort out the rules before you apply: Colorado residence at employment for the Governor's Office, academic credit for CBI and other Public Safety roles, and a driver's license for CDOT and Parks and Wildlife. No department publishes a conversion rate. CBI says its eligible list may be used to fill similar Public Safety positions in the next 12 months.

What Other Companies Should You Consider?

If you're looking at public-sector internships, these employers also hire interns:

Our government internships guide compares more agencies and public-sector programs.

FAQ

Can I still apply for a summer 2026 State of Colorado internship?

No. Summer 2026 internships have run. For summer 2027, the CBI Forensic Services internship is open now (unpaid, for credit) and closes January 15, 2027. Parks and Wildlife internship roles are posted on a rolling basis. The paid summer 2027 postings at CDOT and the Governor's Office are expected from January to April 2027.

Does the State of Colorado have one internship program?

No. Each department recruits its own interns on the state's NEOGOV job board, at governmentjobs.com/careers/colorado. The Governor's Office also takes fall and spring applications through a form on its internship page. So you apply to each posting separately, and the dates, pay and rules differ from one department to the next.

When do State of Colorado summer internships open?

We expect most paid postings for summer 2027 to open between January and April 2027. Last cycle CDOT's engineering internship opened January 5, 2026, and the Governor's Office posting opened March 20, 2026, after opening January 31 the year before. Set job alerts in December, because some windows last only two or three weeks.

Are State of Colorado internships paid?

Some are. In the 2026 postings the Governor's Office paid $20 an hour, CDOT's engineering intern $19.29 to $25.50 an hour and CDOT's property management intern $23.50 an hour. Current Parks and Wildlife roles pay $16 to $20 an hour. CBI forensic and Legislative Legal Services internships are unpaid and taken for academic credit.

Do I need to live in Colorado to intern for the state?

Usually not. Most postings say applications are considered from residents and non-residents of Colorado. The Governor's Office is the main exception: its posting says you must live in Colorado at the time of employment. DOLA's Best and Brightest graduate fellows must also be Colorado residents, so check the line in each posting.

Can I intern in the Governor's Office during the school year?

Yes. The Governor's Executive Internship runs fall, spring and summer sessions, at least 16 hours a week. Fall and spring applications go through a form on the program page. The spring 2026 application closed December 5, 2025. As of November 12, 2026, the spring 2027 form isn't posted, so check the page directly.

Do State of Colorado internships lead to full-time jobs?

Sometimes, but no rate is published. The Department of Public Safety lists a potential pathway to full-time employment with the state as a perk of its internships. CBI says the eligible list from its forensic internship recruitment may be used to fill similar Public Safety positions in the next 12 months.

Can law students intern with the State of Colorado?

Yes. The General Assembly's Office of Legislative Legal Services takes 2L and 3L law students during the legislative session, unpaid and strictly for credit. Its posting for the 2028 session is open now and closes August 20, 2027. The State Public Defender also takes law interns, according to students on Reddit.

The paid summer 2027 postings are expected from January 2027, so use the weeks before then to prepare. A remote Externship gives your application a finished data or policy project to point to.