My internship with Congressman Marc Veasey

Name: Kamila Arap

Hometown: Miami FL

What is your major? International relations and biology with a Global Learning Medallion

Where did you intern? U.S. House of Representatives at the Office of Congressman Marc Veasey (D-TX33)

What was your title? Legislative and press intern

How did you get your internship? I knew a former employee of the same office.

What did you do there? I communicated with constituents through phone and correspondence, facilitated messages between staff members of our office, other congressional offices and outside offices in the district and updated press releases from the congressman for our office and on other social media outlets. 

What projects did you work on? I helped draft the list of congressional members for a new caucus and edit media messages from the congressman on issues like voting rights. 

How does your internship connect back to your coursework? Since a large part of my job was communicating with constituents and updating them on the current bills being voted on and debated, I learned the name and content of many pieces of legislation related to material I’ve studied (Public Health Concerns, Immigration, National Security etc.)

What is the coolest thing about your internship or that has happened during your internship? I attended a senate hearing from the intelligence committee and was able to meet and listen to nine directors of intelligence agencies speak on pressing issues to U.S. national security.

What have you enjoyed most about your experience? Meeting and having the privilege to speak with members of congress that have been able to effect change for their districts, states and nation.

What have you learned about yourself? I learned that being part of an institution that is bigger than you is so important if you want to pursue a career in a large government agency.

What advice do you have for those beginning the internship process? Communication is 50 percent of the process and research is the other 50 percent. Being confident in your skills, researching the positions you want and having the initiative to email, speak to or even grab coffee with a person of interest will cultivate better work relationships and possibly a future internship/job.

How has the position increased your professional confidence? Because the city has such as competive job market, it pressured me, positively, to find confidence in my own professional abilities and put myself out there to find what works for me in terms of communicating with other professionals.

How has the internship expanded your professional network? The location was key in helping me develop a professional network. The headquarters of most government agencies are found there and having the opportunity to be in a room, talking with staff members of these agencies expanded my professional network exponentially.