U.S. Senator Tim Kaine

Legislative Intern

May - July 2019 • Washington, DC

What I liked

The environment was incredible. The land of legislation was at our fingertips: the accessibility we had to other offices, programs, and information, created a really fruitful experience. I was able to see Senators and Congressmen, engage in conversation, and soak up U.S. politics first-hand.

What I wish was different

Time on the Hill is less about the "meaningful projects" and more about taking advantage of the accessibility. As an intern, you attend hearings and briefings to take notes for staffers, and sometimes the work felt like busy work-- but how bad can busy work be if you're listening in on a closed conversation roundtable discussion (not aired on CSPAN, or anywhere!)

Advice

If you have the opportunity to intern on the Hill, don't waste your time! Do everything and attend everything. After you leave the Hill as an intern, there's nothing quite like it.

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Congressional Intern

June - August 2018 • Washington, DC

What I liked

Working in the United States Senate was a fantastic opportunity. Every day was an opportunity to learn about the history of the Senate, learn about different segments of American society and politics, and learn about how our country is run on the federal level.

What I wish was different

I wouldn't have minded having more work assigned to me, but the experience very much encouraged you to go out of your way to find experiences and opportunities for yourself. Some of my fellow interns didn't take full advantage and would waste time, but when you go out of your way to learn and take advantage of the experience, it's unparalleled.

Advice

Take full advantage of every opportunity you have. Introduce yourself to as many people as you can, go out of your way to ask staffers to coffee to get career advice, and look for ways to know what's going on around Capitol Hill at any given moment. There are a million briefings and luncheons that interns can go to where you can meet incredibly knowledgeable folks and learn aplenty. Especially try to give as many constituent tours as possible. You become a master of Capitol-trivia and when non-constituents (i.e. current government officials, foreign ambassadors, former staffers, etc.) want tours you can be the go-to person to give them a tour. I'm sure I don't have to explain why getting to spend several hours practically one-on-one with people who are already working in the field you want to be in is valuable.

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