Recap

Hey all,

I’ve been at home for two weeks or so now, and have had some time to think about my internship experience.

All in all, I had an incredible internship. This was my first real internship, and I couldn’t have had a better boss or been a better organization. Besides just being a good, honest person, my boss is passionate about what she does, intelligent, and knows the field incredibely well – it was awesome to work with and learn from her. Through her feedback and the discussions I had with her I think I was able to greatly enhance my critical reading skills, particularly as they relate to the understanding of reserach studies. Additionally, it was great to be exposed to the real weeds of a field, I was digging through the research that provided the basis for policy recommendations – being able to see the both the depth and breadth of research that creates policy was incredibly interesting. I was also able to put some perspective on some of my professional goals. Generally, everybody who works in DC wants to have an impact on the issues they care about. It is important to realize that you certainly will have an impact if you work hard and are diligent, but it is also important to recognize that change occurs through many small contributions. At this point, I’d just like to stress how awesome it was to work with my boss, I truly had an incredible experience – largely due to her. She is certainly someone I will stay in touch with.

It was also great to see how a Think Tank like EPI works. The staff there were always welcoming, happy to talk about what they were working on, and passionate about the organizations mission. In a turbulent political time, it was awesome to see the way in which the staff worked together to address both specific and overarching policy objectives.

Generally being in DC was also a great experience – being able to be at the center of policy decisions in a turbulent time was interesting and allowed to me to gain some real insights into how things work in DC. Being in DC also certainly proved to be a great networking opportunity, I met so many other young professionals (as well as people higher up the ladder) with whom I will certainly stay in touch.

As my summer draws to a close, I do have two pieces of advice that I’d like to share with next year’s interns. First, start looking early. DC is a city that moves at a fast pace, with possibilities opening on a weekly basis, even late into the summer. That doesn’t mean, however, that you should wait till the last minute to find an opportunity. Alone the process of searching for internship possibilites helped me narrow down where I wanted to work and what I wanted to be working on. So while there will still be opportunities to find internships later on (I met an intern who started working in July and had gotten the internship 3 days earlier), I think that looking at possibilities early on will help you figure out what exactly it is what you want to do for the summer. In my case, I participated in the fall DC trek (which I highly recommend!), which certainly helped me narrow down what I thought would be of interest to me. It also allowed me to, through some connections I made on the trek, meet Jared Bernstein, a well-respected economic policy researcher/analyst/advocate. Through him, I made my way over to EPI. So, start looking early, and use the opportunities that are available to you through the OPCD and your network.

Second, be tenacious. There are thousands of interns in DC every year (and many, many more that are interested in being there), but you will truly stand out if you convey genuine interest in the position and continuously check in on the recruitment process. My boss told me that one of the reasons she decided on me was that I seemed like I really wanted the position, I called and emailed on a fairly regular basis to enquire about the status of the position. That doesn’t mean be annoying – people working in DC are generally busy and finding interns (depending on what organization it is and what their HR Department looks like) is not their top priority. But, you do have a right to know where in the recruitment process the organization is and if you can do anything to further prove yourself to the organization.

Other than that, work hard at what you are doing, but enjoy your summer. While it’s important to use an internship as a tool to advance your professional development, it’s also important to enjoy the experience. Be open to learning new things and to taking criticism – the people around you have plenty of experience and you are bound to make mistakes, but that’s how it works. Only if you take (appropriate) criticsm well, will you be able to really take advantage of the opportunity a summer internship presents.

At this point I’d like to extend a huge thank you to the Kirby Foundation, who made both the fall Career Trek and this years internship possible. I literally wouldn’t have been able to do it without their support, and am truly grateful.

Best,

 

Sebastian