主要研究 今天

在美国实习.S. 首都的国会大厦对24岁的吉尔·蒙顿来说是令人兴奋的, who played a game of “guess that senator” while walking the halls to deliver records to the Senate floor. 的 政治科学 major from Dover, New Hampshire, had always wanted to experience living and working in Washington, D.C. -去活动发生的地方. 而现在，她成了这一切的中心.

蒙顿也参加了 华盛顿中心 计划(TWC)去年秋天. For nearly half a century, 主要研究 has worked with the center to facilitate a semester or summer in D.C. 学生参加研讨会的地方, 在自己选择的组织中建立人脉和实习, 哪一个, 在蒙顿的案例中, 是美国驻阿富汗办事处.S. 来自新罕布什尔州的参议员麦琪·哈桑. 蒙顿没有想到她会在参议院工作, 但当她看到招聘启事时, 她说, “为什么不?然后应用.

作为一名新闻实习生，蒙顿每天早上5点半就开始工作.m. 与参议员的通讯团队密切合作, she collected daily press clips that could be 15 pages or as long as 300, 就像选举日一样. She wrote media summaries of New Hampshire coverage and daily news recaps. 她对团队派给她的任何项目都做好了准备. 我一边读一边看着 很多 的新闻!她说。.

Mundung was one of 11 文理学院 (COLA) students interning in D.C. 通过TWC. 除了学生社团, she was supported by a large and active 主要研究 alumni network that planned events such as an outing to a Red Sox game against the D.C.以及联合国大学校友执行论坛, 她在那里与校友兼学院院长米歇尔·狄龙建立了联系.

“My biggest takeaway from the program is to never be afraid about asking for what you want.”

Dillon says she was particularly delighted to meet Mundung because she was able to hear firsthand about the impact of a recent college funding initiative. 去年, COLA为文科生设立了华盛顿中心奖, a program that provides financial support to offset the significant costs of living in the Washington, D.C.,面积.

“I am grateful every day to have so many donors whose generosity allows me to provide an array of high-impact learning experiences for all of our students,狄龙说. “I frequently am in conversation with COLA alumni who participated in 华盛顿中心 and it’s clear that its strong program is influential in shaping educational experiences and career trajectories. We want to ensure that finances are not an impediment to any current COLA student’s participation.”

Mundung says she is grateful for the award, 哪一个 helped her pay for housing and food.

当她回顾自己在D.C.她说，蒙顿对自己更有信心了.

“My biggest takeaway from the program is to never be afraid about asking for what you want,，她承认自己过去一直羞于这样做. “I also came to terms with the fact that as a first-generation student, 我的起跑线在更远的地方. So, I’ve had to run faster and cover more ground — meaning I’ve had to overcome more barriers in trying to navigate through school and my career path. 我学会了为自己的工作感到骄傲，不要对自己太苛刻.”

Amid the excitement of being in a bustling city and traveling around on the metro (“I’ve fallen deeper in love with public transportation,”她说。, Mundung took time on her solo walks to the 国会大厦 to think about exactly what it is she might want for her future career. 虽然她可能还没想好, she says her internship certainly sparked her interest in working in political communications.