Internships offer real-world experience in D.C.

American University provides many opportunities for students to obtain internships in the school year and in the summer.

Linda Golden, customer service and resource coordinator at the Career Center, said that an online tool called Handshake is one of the most common ways that students find internships.

“We work with employers that we think students are interested in,” Golden said. “Students get advice on networking with people who have interesting jobs.”

According to American University’s Career Center website, the Handshake tool allows students to apply for full-time and part-time jobs and internships, apply for positions through the on-campus recruiting program and schedule on-campus interviews, register for recruitment events, including job and internship fairs, employer information sessions, and networking receptions, and receive automatic alerts when new positions are posted.

“Students can find many resources through Handshake, the Career Resource Library, and networking,” Golden said. “We also have a job and internship fair every year so that students can potentially make connections.”

Arielle Nadler, 21, has interned at two places. She has interned at the American Council of Young Political Leaders and  in the summer at the World Jewish Congress. She said there are many strengths to going to college in the district, and one of the most important is internships.

“Having someone on the inside to vouch for you is important,” Nadler said. “At AU, you can make connections.”

Not all students use the resources for internships at AU, but they are always available.

Dominic Gaddi, 20, has interned on both the House and Senate sides of Congress. He always knew he was interested in politics, but was able to use family connections rather than campus ones.

“I know that the resources exist at AU,” Gaddi said. “I haven’t needed them yet.”

Hannah Byrne, 25, graduated from AU with a bachelor’s degree in history. She is now in its public history master’s program. She enjoys how many different ways there are to understand history.

She noted that the most interesting was the first internship she did, at the Birmingham public library in its archives department.

“I did six internships in my undergraduate years,” Byrne said. “It was a helpful experience related to what I wanted to pursue in grad school.”