I loved the ACLU, it was an amazing organization to be with especially last summer. A lot of seriously intelligent people.
What I wish was different
The internship program for non-legal interns (such as me) was not actually very good. They didn't have much for me specifically to do and people were not giving me work I could be proud of.
Advice
Do not be afraid to ask questions and do what you're interested in.
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Research Intern
May - August 2018 • San Juan, PR
What I liked
I appreciate the exposure I got to Civil and Constitutional law cases when assisting in the drafting process of positions papers of legislation regarding the curtailment of women's reproductive freedom and doing a comparative law exercises of Latin American/European civil codes with Puerto Rico's code. During the 12 weeks I worked there, I was treated as a professional, and was given tasks that do not normally range as common "intern tasks". I met with local activists, assisted the director in meetings with elected officials, while also doing note-taking . Overall, it was a great work environment where my co-workers and I established a personal relationship as well as a professional one.
What I wish was different
I would have liked to have had a more diverse set of issues to tackle. However, at an organization as the ACLU one tackles the cases or issues as they come. Other than that, I would wanted to continue working for them during the semester.
Advice
Never be afraid to take a chance at something that seems impossible. I wanted this internship and I sent an email regarding my interest and then I called the office where they offered me an interview. Definitely, I would say "Dare to do different!"
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Research Intern
July - August 2018 • New York City, NY
What I liked
The impact of the work.
What I wish was different
The workspace.
The level of interaction with senior leadership.
The diversity of tasks assigned.
Advice
Be sure to establish a meaningful project with your supervisor in advance of the internship, because change is harder to instigate once you are on board.
