Sarah Olivo on interning with FMF

Sarah Olivo, FMF summer 2009 intern in our DC office, shared some of her summer intern experiences with her fellow students at East Tennessee State University (ETSU) in the East Tennessean, the official student newspaper of ETSU.

Here's an excerpt of what Sarah had to say...

This summer I got a taste of what the real world will be like for me after I graduate in December. I spent the last few months in Washington, D.C., interning at the Feminist Majority Foundation and learning the ropes of the non-profit world.

... [I worked] on some of FMF's campaigns, like the Afghan Women and Children Campaign and preparing for the Women, Money and Power Summit in October.

I protested CVS in Dupont Circle and a few other interns and I counterprotested in front of Nancy Pelosi's office when a very right-wing, anti-choice group paraded through and outside her building. I even got to see the confirmation of Chief Justice Sonia Sotomayor firsthand.

I researched and wrote for feminist.org about global humanitarian issues and was able to learn some new techniques and practice my writing. For five days a week for two and half months I worked for this organization, learning more about government and legislation than I ever have before, all the while working towards a greater good.

Although my days were almost always filled with researching, blogging, etc. I still got to experience the city and the nightlife like a resident and not a tourist.

Of course I had responsibilities and pretty much a nine-to-five job, but being a 22-year-old college student made the nightlife definitely a memorable part of my summer internship experience.

[...] I cannot stress enough how important I believe this internship is going to be for my future. The skills that I gained just from these quick few months are going give me a leg up after graduation in December.

Before this internship, I was absolutely technologically ignorant, now I blog, I tweet, I network. The options are endless and the doors are beginning to open. ... As I begin to finish at ETSU, if I could leave any advice it would be that students should apply to internships in their field of interest.

Thanks, Sarah, for sharing your experiences with the world - and thanks, ETSU, for giving Sarah academic credit to work with FMF for a summer!

If you're interested in interning with the Feminist Majority Foundation, visit www.feminist.org/intern for more information!