Despite 21 first-year interns employed throughout the AMS offices this year, the AMS executive team hasn’t hired any of their own.

Unpaid interns, typically hired in September each year, are among the many positions that first-year students can apply for upon coming to Queen’s. These include volunteer and service staff positions.

This year, the AMS executive team opted not to hire any first-year interns, an issue addressed by Nathan Utioh, ArtSci ’15, in AMS Assembly on Nov. 8.

“This, to me, is a very disappointing decision. Not only is the exec taking away an opportunity for first year students to get involved, they are closing first-years off from the day-to-day functions of the AMS and the University,” he said in a statement made to Assembly.

Utioh interned for AMS President Morgan Campbell last year.

First-year interns are tasked with learning about the specific position they’re interning for, in addition to holding an open role on council allowing them to learn about other AMS internships.

“I learned more from [Campbell] about the AMS and the University and its history and direction for the future than I learned from attending Assembly or any other ways I got involved with the University,” Utioh, who currently holds the positions of residence facilitator, said.

Each year, AMS councilors have the option to apply to take on an intern, creating proposals to be submitted to the Human Rights Office and to the AMS Vice-President of University Affairs.

“The three of us [on the AMS executive team] felt that our broadening portfolios would prevent us from providing the attention needed for an intern to have a valuable experience and to learn from us,” said AMS President Doug Johnson in an email statement to the Journal.

“We felt it would extremely unfair to hire executive interns … even though it is something we desired to do,” Johnson, ArtSci ’12, said.

— With files from Rachel Herscovici