Diane on the internship search
The reason why the Fletcher staff is lonely all summer long is that our students are so successful in finding internships that meet their career objectives, with the result that they’re generally out of town. Diane, our student blogger, tells us about her internship search, and shares a couple of photos from her summer post.
At Fletcher, the summer between the first and second years of the MALD or MIB program is open for students to use as they wish. While internships are not required, students are encouraged to pursue one, and most do. Others may prefer to use the time to develop their language skills, research or prepare their Capstone Project, or travel.
Coming into Fletcher I knew the biggest gap on my résumé was my lack of field experience. Therefore my goal for the summer revolved around going to a developing country to work. I was hoping to find a research project that fit at least one of my interests: food security, mobile technology, or impact evaluations.
In January I began my search, reaching out to alumni at the DC Career Trip, speaking with second years about their experiences, and doing a lot of internet research. My best resource became my professors, who were able to put me in touch with some of their contacts. I sent a lot of emails, and got a few great leads; however, as the months went on, I still didn’t have an offer.
One organization that interested me and that I had identified early on was Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA). Friends at Fletcher who had either previously worked or interned with IPA in the past informed me that the organization advertises internships quite late, so I kept an eye on the website, and applied while still continuing my search through my networks.
Right before exams I had a flurry of interviews for different opportunities, and on the day of my last exams, I received an offer to spend my summer in Tamale, Ghana with IPA. As I had already planned to head home in a week, I packed my stuff the next day and flew to Australia where, in amongst catching up with family and friends, I organized my visa, booked flights, got immunizations and anti-malarial tablets, searched for a mosquito net, packed for some very warm weather, and got on a plane (or four planes, to be exact).
IPA designs and evaluates potential solutions to poverty using randomized evaluations and is based out of Yale University with offices across the world. I am working on a project that involves offering rainfall insurance to farmers and I will be investigating whether this insurance can be made available through other organizations once the project is complete. I am sure it is going to be a great summer, and look forward to returning to Fletcher in the fall to apply what I have learnt.
