What I Learned From Interning In Washington, DC

I never knew what it felt to be homesick for a place I'd never called home until I left DC. I found my way to DC through The Washington Center, who helped me secure an incredible internship with the Law Office of Matthew Rist, PLLC. After 4 exciting months, here's some of what I learned:

Everyone you meet is a potential business contact--Or friend--Or both. During my time in DC, I live with 2 girls from Puerto Rico, and one from South Korea. We all had different ways of doing things and it took getting used to, but apparently wine, brownies, and 90s pop songs have a universal appeal. In terms of business contacts, I would not be surprised if some of the people in my internship program go on to do great things. TWC allowed us to get to know each other really well, and I'm happy to say I have friends now from Brazil, to Canada and from Puerto Rico to India. I also sought out a mentor at The Washington Center--one of the advisors who had experience in the legal field. She was incredible in helping me start my law school admission adventure and she even put me in touch with some of her Georgetown contacts.

Don't wait until the last minute to see all the sights. I left DC in December, and the night before we left, my friend and I were determined to see the White House, Capitol and the Christmas Tree. Needless to say, we went right after work and it was freezing. While we made a stop for cocoa and had a blast, we had to rush so that we could see everything we wanted to see. The only other time I went sightseeing was when I first arrived in DC. The best way to do it would be to see a few things every couple of weekends so that you don't leave feeling like you were rushed or missed anything.

Being an intern was one of the most unique and rewarding experiences of my life. That's not to say at times it wasn't difficult: the first time I was assigned to write a motion, I had no idea what to do. For me at least, it was a quick learning curve. The feeling of written a motion, then hearing a judge read my words in a hearing is indescribable. There are times when it's easy to feel overwhelmed, underwhelmed or just confused as an intern, but moments like those make up for them in spades. Another incredible feeling was the hug a client gave me after he was found not guilty of a DUI charge: It meant a lot to know that a client realized how much work everyone in the office, myself included, had put into the case. Another thing I can't stress enough is that you are chosen to intern by your boss for a reason, and once you have your bearings ask questions and speak up! My co-intern and I were able to go with my boss to places he had never thought to take interns before, simply because we asked if we could. 

Through my experience at the law office, to my love for the city and all the people I met, my time in DC made me feel at home and realize that I could be happy in the legal field: someday, maybe even the legal arena of DC.