(Part 2 of my series on my best and worst internship experiences)

During my sophomore year, as I prepared for my second summer as a college student, I was determined to tailor for myself the perfect summer. The previous summer, which I detail in my last blog post, was difficult, but I’d come out of it in one piece with a new level of self awareness. I had come to the conclusion that my negative experience had little to do with the program I was in, but also wasn’t entirely my fault. It simply had not been a good fit, and that was okay.

As I brainstormed what to do with the coming summer break, I took all the experiences of the previous summer, both positive and negative, into account. For example, here were a few of my problem-solving strategies that helped narrow down my choices

Problem: I had been wildly unhappy living on my own with no friends or family, in an unfamiliar big city.

Solution: Find an internship close enough to my friends and family that I could either live at home or commute back on the weekends.

Me at my job in SF

Problem: I found working among a large team of my peers to be difficult, mainly due to hostile social dynamics. I wanted more personal freedom, and experience working independently.

Solution: Look at internships that involve working on a smaller team, one on one with an adult mentor, or within a group with more varied age ranges and diversity.

Problem: I felt that during the previous summer, I hadn’t pushed myself hard enough to try something new. I went for education because it was something I knew and understood, but the choice was ultimately wrong for me.

Solution: Apply for internships that seem out of reach, and challenge my conceptions of what I am, or am not, qualified to do. Try something with which I have little prior experience.

These were just the major factors I took into consideration.

Now, actually finding the perfect internship posed a huge challenge. As I mentioned in a previous post, I come from a small, rural, town in Southern Oregon. I needed to be very creative finding local nonprofits, businesses, and agencies, and I needed to be extra assertive in asking for work.

I was looking specifically for research, because this fulfilled my other two criteria. It was something I’d never tried before, that felt intimidating to me. When I thought of research, a little voice in my head always chimed in with “Oh, but you can’t do that. That’s for other students!” To me, that was one surefire sign of a good challenge. Plus, research felt more independent, with more opportunity for diverse interactions in the lab.

To find my internship, I started with using the connections I had. My dad is a violin teacher, and my mom is a real estate agent, so I didn’t feel I had a ton to work with. But my friend’s dad taught biology at the local Southern Oregon University, and my dad had a few friends working for state wildlife agencies. I also inquired at two local climate nonprofits, just in case the research opportunities didn’t pan out.

A few connections with whom I inquired never got back to me. That was expected. I was however excited when two of my contacts did respond. One of the climate nonprofits needed help with updating the blog on their website. But best of all, it turned out that the parent of one of my dad’s students, Dave, worked as a fish and wildlife biologist at Crater Lake National Park, a beautiful national landmark two hours from my house. He didn’t offer me an immediate in, but showed me various avenues through which I could apply for research and internships.

The fellowship for which I chose to apply was at the graduate level, but Dave had told me that I had a decent chance of getting it. Besides, hadn’t I wanted to challenge myself to apply for an internship that stretched my qualifications? So I did. With the help of both my advisor at Keck and Dave, I began crafting a long proposal for my independent internship at Crater Lake.

It was a rainy day in April when I got the phone call from Dave– I was in. I had received my $3,000 in funding, and he would be my advisor and mentor all summer.

The process was painstaking, but knowing that I put effort into finding an internship that was tailored to fit my work ethic, skills, and ambitions was completely worth it. I had no idea what research for a National Park would be like, but unlike my previous summer, I knew that I had put serious thought into my decision. And that made all the difference.

I understand on a visceral level the sense of accomplishment that this penguin feels.

(In my next post, I’ll talk about what made my time at Crater Lake so fun and fulfilling– and what I learned…stay tuned!)