To Intern is to Learn

The internship is an experiential learning experience and a preparation for the real world. Accordingly, to intern is to learn and gain further skills. To put it differently, my experiential work is meant to hone my skills and allow me to utilize the arsenal of skills I already have. This will make me well prepared for the real world. Personally, I can tell that my internship at the Eldercare Workforce Alliance is a fabulous resource for learning. Thus far, I have learnt how to use Hootsuite, MS Publisher and Google search techniques. I do partake in developing the monthly newsletter and managing the social media outlets for the organization. The workplace is very dynamic and fast-paced, and my manager is literally a workaholic. Although my manager is very lenient and supportive, she expects me to do a lot of tasks in short spans of time. I greatly appreciate her crystal clear instructions and detailed feedback.

My daily work duties do include searching for germane health articles and aging-related news stories. This makes me pay due heed to details, not to mention the fact that it enables me to have up-to-date exposure to the health news from multiple of sources. Sometimes I tend to read other news stories that interest me. Being in a position that is meant to spread the word about the work and events of all organizations affiliated to the alliance, I do keep an eye on all social media as well as the website of these organizations. Additionally, drafting and editing press releases and brief issues is an integral part of my job. My journalism expertise has proved to be a great asset for me in this regard.

At another level, the monthly collaborative conference calls are very salient and added a lot to my skill set. These calls bring together the staff of most, if not all, employees of such organizations to keep them updated about the new policies, let them share all the events or information with other employees and listen to their suggestions and feedback about our work. For the most part, this is an evaluation of the work I am doing and of the team I am a member in.

The best part of my internship is attending some hearings at the US Senate every now and then, let alone meeting senators' key staff and being in direct contact with them. This is a great way for networking and advocacy.  Furthermore, the alliance will host a conference on the 30^th of October that will be attended by some senators and people of higher ranks in the Washington, DC area. As a policy and communications intern, I work closely with other team members to plan for this briefing and to do all what it takes to make it a big success.

In brief, it is quite safe to say that the internship is a miniature version of a real world job. As such, having an internship that is learning-oriented and skills-focused can lend itself to the success of one's future career.