Getting Ahead, Not Just Getting Someone’s Coffee: D.C. Summer Internships

Undergraduates share their summer internship experience stories in Washington, D.C. and how their Catholic University experience is lighting the way for their future.

MaggieMae Dethlefsen

Politics, pre-law rising senior with minors in social work and philosophy 

Internship: Franciscan Mission Service (FMS)

Most memorable experience: Being able to see everything that goes into working for a nonprofit organization; from mission appeals to grants. It’s such a welcoming community.

Favorite part of the job: The project I have enjoyed working on the most is the Mission Appeal projects. FMS has alumni who volunteer to go to different parishes across the country to talk about their time in service. It shows the strong connection that the alumni still have with FMS and helps me  really see the positive effect that FMS has had on their lives.

What have you learned? I have learned so many skills that I am going to be able to bring into the next chapters of my life and  a variety of careers.

Nathan-Raegan Stickney

World politics rising senior

Internship: Center for Energy Security and Diplomacy at The Institute of World Politics

Highlight: Attending the Global Energy Forum in Washington, D.C., with a delegation of high ranking energy officials from Saudi Arabia.

How’d you hear about it? The Institute for World Politics  was recommended to me by multiple professors and students that had heard of the organization.

Most important Catholic University mentor: Probably Dr. John White, who is a retired professor in the Politics Department. He has been instrumental in connecting me to opportunities in DC and advising my political and academic career as it has developed.

A day in a life: A typical day for me looks like waking up, working on briefings and policy documents at home, and then heading into the office at IWP to start interactive seminars with other interns and continuing on my Energy Security & Diplomacy specific work. At the end of the work day, I will typically meet friends at the National Mall or at a coffee shop in DC to catch up and enjoy beautiful sites around the city.

What are you most excited about? We have already been on some pretty amazing excursions, but I am excited to attend a global energy forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in October as a part of my participation in this internship!

Marta Bystrowska

Politics and anthropology rising senior, with minors in philosophy and history

My summer experience: Hertog Foundation political theory fellowship. It’s a six-week fellowship with students from around the world coming together to study political theory across fields from philosophy to history to policy. It’s a great way to be in DC for the summer while pursuing my academic and career interests.

D.C. advantage: There’s always something happening here in the policy and academic world. It’s so great to be here and show everyone my favorite spots like the museums, the Wharf, and farmers markets on the weekends. It’s really nice having this blend of academic and career pursuits while also having a lot of things to do for fun.

Catholic University advantage: My first week of the fellowship we read Plato’s Gorgias. I noticed that even students at more competitive institutions had a lack of knowledge of these philosophical texts. Going to Catholic gave me a leg up in that class. 

Karolin Kleiber

World politics rising sophomore

Internship: Juvenile detention center tutor with the Petey Greene Program

Making a difference: There's something wonderful about watching a students' relief when they grasp a concept and knowing that your guidance made that happen.

Best day:  One day, we had students from MIT come and do different STEM activities such as bottle rockets, which was a great hands-on way to engage the students.

Next steps: I’ve gained a firsthand experience of the justice system, which is crucial for my future legal career. In addition to refining my tutoring skills that I used as an AP French tutor in high school and will continue to use in the tutoring centers at Catholic University, I’ve also gotten better at conflict resolution and adapting to teaching within the juvenile detention center environment. 

Michael Ryan

Politics rising junior

Internship: The Heritage Foundation, a D.C.-based think-tank

Why spend a summer in D.C.? I wanted to have some sort of political internship over the summer to increase my understanding and experience of politics and its role in our everyday lives.

Highlight: The coolest project I have worked on is writing an op-ed, which we have the opportunity to do in this internship.

A typical day: I work on at least a couple of projects, engage in meaningful conversations with other interns, often attend a lecture, and occasionally go to a fun event after work.

Most important mentor on campus: Dr. Taryn Okuma because she has helped me in a lot of academic decisions I have made throughout my college career so far. She has also always been so encouraging and helps students to feel confident in themselves.