Student Mediator (Paid, Summer Opportunity for Undergraduate Students)
Division of Economic Justice
Rochester Regional Office
Student Mediator (Paid, Summer Opportunity for Undergraduate Students)
Reference No. ROC_PUGS_SUM_2020
The application deadline is April 17, 2020
The Rochester Regional Office 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 number 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.
Student mediators 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 phone training is provided and is ongoing, as is back up from permanent staff. Excellent communication skills are developed as a result of this role, including the ability to handle dissatisfied people.
The assistance the student may be asked to provide in support of law enforcement investigations and actions varies significantly depending on the caseload and nature of the cases. We cannot predict if or how much work of this nature may be required. There is often help needed summarizing consumer complaints, doing data entry, reviewing business documents, or performing online research. Attention to detail is very important in these tasks.
Position Details
- Undergraduates in their first year should wait to submit their applications until after they have received their first semester grades.
- Given the training involved and the nature of the work, this position requires a minimum commitment of 15 hours/week for 12 weeks. Longer commitments are preferred. Students who are interested in continuing their positions into the academic year should indicate this availability in their cover letters.
- The selected candidate will be hired as a student assistant at the hourly rate of $13.86 for undergraduate students.
- Applications will be accepted online and positions will be filled on a rolling basis.
- Applicants must be available to meet in person or by video conference for interviews.
- Applicants must be eligible to be employed in the U.S.
- To be eligible, applicants must be full-time undergraduate students in good academic standing as defined by their schools.
- 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.
Candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
The OAG is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to workplace diversity.
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 this opportunity are being received online. To apply, please click on the 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 application deadline is April 17, 2020, but please note that positions will be filled on a rolling basis.
The following documents are required for each application that is submitted: (Click on the document name to learn more)
- Please address to Legal Recruitment.
- If applying to multiple bureaus/regional offices, we recommend that you submit the same cover letter for each application, ranking those bureaus/regional offices in order of your preference.
- Indicate in your cover letter whether there are any deadlines related to your candidacy.
List of three (3) references.
- Only submit professional (i.e., supervisor or professor) references.
- Indicate your professional relationship to each reference.
- Include contact information and email addresses for each reference.
- An unofficial transcript is acceptable.
- Undergraduates in their first year should wait to submit their application until after they have received their first semester grades.
- Submit any piece of writing that demonstrates your ability to communicate and analyze information in a clear and concise manner, as well as your grammatical skills.
Failure to submit a complete application will delay the consideration of your candidacy.
Please allow at least three (3) business weeks for your application to be processed and reviewed by the hiring bureau/regional office. After three (3) weeks, to request a status update, please click here.
If you have questions about a position with the OAG, the application process or need assistance with submitting your application, please contact Legal Recruitment at recruitment@ag.ny.gov.