The Hum: Under pressure

Students tackle pressures and expectations of AU internship culture

Helena Milburn, Ela Hernández, Marisa Álvarez, Grace Manson, Molly Gannon, Paul Caruso, Alexandra Valerio, and Kate d’Arcy

April 8, 2024

This semester the Hum team interviewed students about the internship culture at AU. We spoke to students in different years about the pressure they feel to get an internship, how they feel about the ones they have and how they deal with rejection.

First-year Nodoka Katsura is an international student from Japan. She talked about finding an internship as an international student.

“Something I noticed when I came to D.C. is that D.C. has this overachievement culture which other states don’t have because, you know, we are very fortunate with our locations, we have a lot of job opportunities,” Katsura said.

Sophomore Verity Sullivan ended her first year disappointed that she did not get an internship that year, but looking back now, she said it was ultimately for the best.

“My spring semester and fall semester of sophomore year gave me time to have a good time in college because as much as college is about academics and preparing for your career, you should be having fun in college,” Sullivan said. “It gave me time to have fun and also to wait for the perfect opportunity, and now I feel like I’m way more prepared to look ahead to summer and fall of junior year.”

Brandon Smith, who is graduating in Fall 2024, said while he feels the pressure to get internships at AU, it also motivates him.

“It definitely lights a fire under you, but also it can lead to insecurity when you’re constantly hearing about all the great stuff other people are doing, and you feel like you might be getting left behind,” Smith said.

Finally, AWOL spoke to Hokulani Panerio-Langer, a first-year who found an internship through the Cornerstone program. She stressed the importance of AU students finding their self-worth beyond internships.

“I think that it is important for AU students to remember that we need to take care of ourselves first and that having an internship is important, and it’s helpful, but it’s not everything,” Panerio-Langer said.

To hear the rest of these students’ stories, listen to our latest episode of The Hum on your favorite podcast listening platform!

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About the Contributors

Helena Milburn, Podcast Director

Helena Milburn (she/her) is a senior majoring in journalism and minoring in political science. Milburn grew up in New York City with her parents, younger sister, and dog named Einstein. She has been a part of AWOL since her freshman year. Though she has also written for AWOL, the podcast is what drew her to AWOL her freshmen year. Milburn is happy to be able to lead the podcast this semester to help others have the community and experience it gave her.

Ela Hernández, Podcast Producer

Ela Hernández (she/her) is a junior majoring in international studies and minoring in women, gender and sexuality studies.

Grace Manson, Podcast Staff

Grace Manson (she/her) is a junior from Virginia studying CLEG. Manson has a hound named Greta Gertrude II, and she is on the debate team and equestrian club. Manson is trying to learn Spanish and can kinda play guitar, piano, and ukulele (source: trust me bro). She loves Broadway and comedy and is always looking for new shows to get into (shameless Beetlejuice plug). If Manson had to narrow it down, she'd say she really enjoys investigative journalism and pop culture, though her journalistic interests are all over the place. Fun fact about Manson: when she was 9, she was roped into taking professional yodeling lessons. Oh, the days of musical theatre...

Paul Caruso, Staff Writer

From Long Island, NY, Paul Caruso is a senior double majoring in International Studies and Legal Studies studying conflict resolution. Though new to AWOL, he is active in both the writing and podcast departments. He enjoys all dogs, foreign languages, 80s music and writes poetry and creative essays on the side.

Kate d’Arcy, Staff Writer

Kate d'Arcy (She/Her) is a junior studying journalism with a minor in french and creative writing. Whenever not writing, she is spending time with friends, cuddling her cat, diving into a new book or exploring D.C.