Congressional Intern Reflection

This past summer, when I lived and worked in Washington, DC—first as a U.S. Senate Page and then as a Congressional Intern—I gained invaluable experience and insight to the American political system. It is amazing how much one can learn from simply overhearing the conversations of Members of Congress on a daily basis. Working on the floor of the Senate and then in the back rooms of a Congressional office were two entirely different experiences, each teaching me in a distinctive way about how our political system functions. While I most definitely became aware of how bureaucratic and slow our democratic system can be, I also discovered that with a commitment to unity and prosperity for the common good, great feats are attainable through government.

But in addition to just working on Capitol Hill this past summer, politics, government and history have been my academic and personal passions ever since I attended the 2008 DNC. For me, these subjects aren’t just regular topics that get covered in school or that I have to research for assignments—they are what I actually enjoy and engross me as a learner. That is why I have attended two national political conventions, volunteered on campaigns and started an academic club devoted to the field. It is also why I constantly follow current events, from vastly different perspectives, and read whatever can further advance my understanding of how the political system functions. I don’t participate in any of this because I have too—I do it because I sincerely love it.
Hence, the reason I seek to study political science at Columbia is to further deepen my education in the field which I am so enthusiastic about, with the hope of graduating with a proficiency in it to be prepared for a career in politics.