Last fall, I wrote about my experience as an intern through Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS)—a program that connects undergraduate students with community partners to complete funded summer internships in civic service. Having loved the work that I did last summer, I was excited to return for a second PICS internship.
Summer internships are an excellent opportunity to explore your career interests. They are opportunities to assess what you do and don’t like about particular fields or work environments, as well as allow you to reflect on what you can improve on as a young professional. My decision to work for the Latin American Legal Defense Fund last summer was a result of my interest in the nonprofit sector generally, as well as the organization’s commitment to the empowerment of immigrant communities. I loved working within the environment of a nonprofit organization, but I knew I wanted to seek out an internship that would be more directly involved in legal work in the future. Thankfully, PICS’ wide variety of community partners made it very easy to find another organization that aligned with my values and interests.
Immigration Equality is an organization that provides legal services to LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrants and their families, particularly for those seeking asylum or refugee status. The organization is involved in a wide range of advocacy and litigation efforts in addition to connecting individuals with other pro bono attorneys as necessary and hosting relevant events around New York City.
When seeking out my internship for the summer of my junior year, I knew I wanted to connect with an organization deeply rooted in immigration justice and advocacy. Immigration Equality was truly the best organization I could have ended up working at. I had the privilege of working alongside a team of extremely passionate, knowledgeable, and welcoming individuals. As a legal intern, I was responsible for a variety of projects, ranging from creating a presentation for a pro se asylum filing workshop to putting together a country conditions index for a client’s case. I was excited to get to work with many of the attorneys at Immigration Equality, especially since each worked on something different—the refugee program, asylum cases, and the detention hotline, to name a few. Furthermore, I felt myself grow as an individual in the workplace, advocating for myself to receive more assignments I was interested in and reaching out with questions whenever I felt confused. No matter how small or complicated my questions, everyone was always willing to take the time to respond and I can easily say I learned a lot about the immigration system.
My internship was remote, which meant that I was able to spend my summer reconnecting with my hometown in a way that I hadn’t gotten to since coming to Princeton. I enjoyed breakfast with my family every morning and did my work on the back porch with a cup of tea in the Florida heat. Getting to do so was an important part of what I hoped to get out of my summer, and I am thankful for my PICS internship’s role in enabling this for me. In addition to spending time at home, I was able to start preparing for my post-Princeton plans and take the time to reflect on the last few years. Connecting with my paired alumni mentor through PICS was an integral part of this reflection.
As I move into senior year, I feel recharged and fueled in my desire to pursue a career in immigration law. And although obvious nerves abound, I find myself more excited than ever to see where my future as an academic will take me.
