Jonathan Trinh
World Affairs Council - Washington, DC
Theater &
Political Economy - Class of 2014

Jennifer Pilecki
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
Public Health - Class of 2014

Jennifer Lopez
Office of U.S Senator Barbara Boxer
Public Policy - Class of 2014

When I came to Cal I had no interest in going into politics and I thought that majoring in psychology had no relation to the political sphere. When thinking about what it was that I wanted to do for a career, I continuously found myself thinking about the public education system and the policy that has affected my education. During my search for an internship that would best fit me, I sought the opportunity to work somewhere that would give me insight on the legislative process and what it took to influence and create policy.

Working on the Hill has allowed me to develop as person and given me the opportunity to be a part of a team that has enriched my political experience. Since day one, everyone in the office was welcoming and enthusiastic upon my arrival. The staffers that work for Senator Barbara Boxer share her passion and dedication on issues that have great affect on our lives.I have had the opportunity to do research, attend hearings/briefings, write memos, and be a part of indescribable experiences that have assured me that I want to work in policy. Working for my senator has not only provided me with key information on the legislative process and helped me develop in my professional aspect, but it has also allowed me to work with constituents. Having been on both sides, I am honored to have had the chance to be a liaison between constituents, their concerns, and the senator.

Being on the other side of the country has been an amazing experience. I’ve met different people with different views and have had the chance to visit many places I would have never visited had it not been for my internship in DC. Despite the weather, I am proud have worked in a city that is the pinnacle of policy-making, where people from all over the world are united,and where the action happens. I will always remember my many moments of awe, as I stood star-struck when I’d share trains, elevators, and the air with many senators.

Arielle Spinner
Intern
Sociology and Rhetoric Minor - Class of 2013

I try to make time, at least once a week, to take a mental inventory of what I’ve learned at my internship and to reflect on my experiences. In the past five weeks, I have definitely grown professionally and personally. I think this growth has been so fast-paced mostly because a professional working environment is not something that I have had an enormous amount of experience with. Put me into an academic environment and I’ll do what I always do: take notes, try to absorb as much of it as I can, and put in the work I need to put in, in order to get the results I want. A work environment doesn’t have as much of a predictable format; working in an office with other people requires you to “think on your feet,” learn as you go, and basically teach yourself a lot. I really value having the opportunity to realize this before I graduate and permanently enter the working world.

The most notable lesson I’ve taken away from my experience so far is that, while you must always be looking for opportunities to learn, you must be open to the fact that teachers may not always be available (and that you don’t always need them). Here’s an example. Microsoft Excel is essentially the foundation upon which my internship is built. Pretty much everything I’ve been asked to do at my organization has required using Microsoft Excel at some step of the process. When I got here, my knowledge of Excel didn’t extend far past creating graphs, and I only know how to do that because of the Statistics-based Sociology classes I’ve taken. So on my second day, when my supervisor casually told me to “concatenate” data from one spreadsheet to the next, I was filled with panic. I sat down at the computer, intern manual in hand, and frantically tried to complete the task. Even though the written directions were clear to someone who knows basically what they’re supposed to be doing, I was not in that category yet. I likely had a visible question mark written across my face.  I considered walking over to my supervisor’s office and asking for help; she’s friendly and approachable, and I knew that she would show me how to concatenate if I asked. But then I realized that this would reveal a couple things about me:

1. I didn’t know how to concatenate;
2. I wasn’t determined enough to figure it out myself.

So I sat at my desk and spent more time on Google than I’d like to admit, but I finally did it. Sure, I could have asked for help and completed the task in less than half the time, but figuring it out myself meant that I never forgot how to do it again. It meant that I could take more pride in my work. It meant that I was able to show my boss that I’m an independent employee.   I don’t mean to say that you should never ask for help—of course you should, when you absolutely need to. But when you have the opportunity to do something yourself, it is ultimately more satisfying, and makes you more of an asset to your organization. 

Sarah Lewis
House of Representatives
Psychology and Public Policy Minor - Class of 2013

As you can imagine, the past few weeks on the Hill have been incredibly busy. What with the Affordable Care Act controversy, the presidential campaign heating up, and Congress trying to get through as much legislation as possible before August recess, interning in the House of Representatives has been non-stop work. Staffers rush in and out of the Committee of Energy and Commerce office where I intern, sometimes yelling, sometimes sighing, but always moving.

That’s why I was so surprised and thankful when one of the staffers I was working with for a few environmental hearings took time out of her busy schedule to talk to me about my goals, aspirations, and options after graduation. I have literally only seen this woman in her office twice because she is always at meetings, hearings, on the phone, etc, but she spent twenty whole minutes listening to me describe my background, passions and tentative plans for the future. She then proceeded to give me amazing advice about doing double public policy/law programs after I graduate, and how to determine which school is best fit for me. I was shocked at how much she seemed to want to learn more about me, and how willing she was to share her thoughts with me on how best to get into a career in public policy. To be honest, I left her office feeling confident about my plans for the future for the first time in my life. 

After that, I began to notice how the staffers in my office really did care about enriching our intern experience, rather than just getting free labor out of us (as the stereotype goes). My intern coordinator arranges “brown bag lunches” on Fridays with various staffers on the Energy and Commerce Committee, who tell us their stories of how they came to the Hill and to answer any questions we may have. Every single staffer we’ve talked to has seemed genuinely interested in where we come from, what we’re getting out of our summer, and where we want to go.

I guess before I came to Washington D.C. I expected an experience more in line with what I read on the internet: interns disregarded for their networking faux pas, inappropriate outfit choices, and lack of political knowledge. Instead, I have been pleasantly surprised by how even Representative Henry Waxman himself seemed genuinely interested in hearing what I and the other interns had to say about our take on current hot-button issues. He sat with us for nearly thirty minutes, looked us in the eye, and thanked us for our work with the Committee. Then he said (in his quiet, calm way), “You don’t have to work for Congress or in the White House, but the best thing you can do is take your political enthusiasm to the greater community. We need people to care about these issues, and we need you.” I may be just another intern struggling with which side of the escalator to stand on at the Metro, but with people like this inspiring me every day to pursue a career in public service, I just might find myself working here permanently.

Stephanie Thomas
National Geographic Society
English - Class of 2013

When making my summer internship decision, I ended up weighing two fantastic positions: one was a paid internship and the other an unpaid editorial internship at National Geographic Society. I ended up choosing National Geographic due to my long-standing obsession with the organization. However, the decision wasn’t easy. As a financially independent, out-of-state student at a university where the tuition is constantly climbing, it was painful to consciously deny myself a much-needed stipend. This money vs. passion dilemma continued all summer—that is, until I began my internship.

Immediately upon walking through the doors of National Geographic, I was welcomed with smiles and helping hands (not the mention the planetarium ceiling!). I was also immediately thrown into a research assignment. No welcome week, no syllabi, no nonsense. Thankfully as an English major, research is a comfortable position for me. I found myself spending hours in Geographic’s library researching the Punic Wars and George Washington’s false teeth. For some that may sound tedious, but I was so giddy I talked to every librarian (total cliché intern moment). Had I accepted the paid position, I would have done research, it’s true, but I wouldn’t have been as invested in my work. Suddenly, I realized what people are talking about when they say do what you love.

Upon completing my first assignment, I attended the annual Explorer’s Symposium. The Symposium at its core is a series of panels by National Geographic’s Emerging Explorers. Emerging Explorers are rare men and women in their early careers who use unique talents to change the world. This may be through conservation, science, technology, or photography, but the one thing they all have in common is a passion to positively impact their environment. While listening to dozens of innovative men and women from around the world talk about past achievements and future dreams, it suddenly clicked: I am meant to be at National Geographic. All my life, I’ve fit myself into the political world. I enjoy it, but there were always indications it wasn’t for me. In conversation, friends would discuss the conflict in Syria or federal funding of non-profits, but I was always “that person” who’d randomly interject, “Did you read about the new species of tarantula in Northern India?” At National Geographic, though, I’m surrounded by people who are interested in those tarantulas—where do they live? How long have they lived there? What do they mean for the ecological climate of India? I don’t mean to imply that National Geographic employees aren’t interested in politics, but for an English major who has been surrounded with many Political Science majors in the Cal in the Capital program, I am relieved to find my niche in D.C.

It’s my hope for the program to continue to expand it’s reach beyond the political world. As one of the new Cal in the Capital Directors, I want to make sure the humanities and science majors take advantage of the plentiful opportunities in D.C. UC Berkeley is a diverse campus, and we need to represent ourselves as such. In the meantime, I look forward to my work at National Geographic and experiencing more of D.C. life. My budget may be tight next year because of this summer, but I’m learning that there are many more enriching experiences than cashing in a paycheck.