Below is a sample of recent internship experiences that students have used to complement their academic study.
Connor Greenwood
Internship site: Senate Office of Rob Portman, Spring 2017
“Moving forward, this internship has helped provide me with a solidified idea of what type of skills I need to hold to excel in public service. These skills include flexibility, integrity, a strong sense of responsibility and dependability, time management and organization, proficient and succinct writing, and effective communication."
"I have already mentioned a few of these, but I cannot reiterate enough how important these qualities are in becoming a successful staffer, or even elected official someday. As a staffer/intern, you are trusted to always be representing the Senator. You must carefully choose wording and be sure not to misrepresent his beliefs or policies.”
Rachel LaPointe
Internship site: The Ohio State University Middle East Studies Center, Spring 2017
“In relation to my field of study, I am incredibly thrilled to have worked at the Middle East Studies Center. I am currently on a pre-law track and will hopefully specialize in immigration law as I get older. My hope is to assist in immigration reform and help refugees coming from the Middle East."
"I had this passion prior to my time at the center, but this commitment has only ever been deepened since the day I started. I feel so thankful to have gotten hands-on experience with research related to the Middle East and to have learned a great deal on the field I one-day hope to enter.”
Jamie Screen
Internship site: Signature Worldwide, Spring 2017
“I am very thankful that I had the chance to work with this company. I have come closer to finally deciding what I want to do after graduation thanks to this internship; I have realized that I really do enjoy learning about different countries and how foreign companies present themselves. I am now considering a career in international business. I am looking forward to seeing where the valuable skills I have learned throughout this internship will take me.”
Helina Solomon
Internship Site: Community Refugee and Immigration Services (CRIS), Autumn 2016
“The benefits of this internship program have been enormous. I had the opportunity to work with the most diverse group of people I've seen in a business environment during my time at CRIS (Community Refugee Immigration Services) - this was a blessing."
"I also had the opportunity to meet people from countries I didn't even know existed (Bhutan) and hear languages I had never heard of before, through working alongside social workers, many of whom had once been seeking refuge as well."
"As an immigrant, and the child of two Ethiopian immigrants, I saw with a new lens the process of arriving in the United States, and the impact policy has on the lives of ordinary people - for better or worse. I was able to use my background to translate for Amharic-speaking clients on occasion, and felt the rush of being able to use my heritage and bilingualism to help."
"I learned how to insert numeric values into computer systems in order to make a picture move on a website, wrote the monthly newsletter, and kept the public up to date on CRIS happenings through Facebook. These experiences influenced a side interest of mine in computer science.”