The Intern Files: EMILY's List

The following blog post was written by peer advisor Delaney, an ESIA sophomore studying international affairs. Learn more about Delaney here.
I have always been a fan of the planning. In high school, I had weekly plans but also a broader monthly plan. I loved agendas, and I still do. My mom’s go-to Christmas gift to me each year is a wall calendar. It felt natural then that before coming to college, I should have a plan for my future. This plan formed midway through my junior year of high school when I discovered my love of international affairs. My plan was to major in international affairs, do all things international affairs and pursue internships with international foci. Basically, I wanted to follow a straight and narrow path toward my intended career as a diplomat for the United States.
When it came time to pursue my first internship, I maintained this line of thinking. By summer, I had a running list of about seven internships I thought I wanted to apply to. I applied and was accepted to one, which I was relatively happy with. The organization was international, but the department I was placed in did not particularly interest me. Nevertheless, I accepted the offer.
Just a couple days after interviewing with this organization, I stumbled across another internship per the suggestion of a friend. The internship was with EMILY’s List which, after a bit of research, I discovered was a domestic organization that aimed to help elect pro-choice, Democratic women into office, with a particular focus on millennial women and women of color. I loved these goals, but the organization was domestic, not international, hence a deviation from my original plan. Despite my concerns, I applied and two weeks later was offered a position on their State and Local Campaigns team.
Don’t get me wrong—I love domestic politics. I had been following the election since before the primary. I was the girl in high school who was teased about her vocal political views. My Facebook is littered with political posts, and I geeked out so hard over this election. By no means was I uninterested in domestic politics; I simply had intended to pursue a career in the international arena.
I had to make a decision. Should I forgo the opportunity to intern with an international organization in a not-so-great department to work for a domestic organization I had just become interested in a couple weeks prior? Was I seriously considering deviating from my plan?
After talking with my mom, consulting with friends from school, and some one-sided conversations with my dogs, I decided to back out of my internship at the initial international organization and accept my offer at EMILY’s List.

This decision was undoubtedly one of the best I’ve made thus far in my collegiate career. I joined a group (/network/family) of well-connected, wildly intelligent and passionate woman who genuinely care about their work. I experienced this election year in a manner I never thought possibly. I gained skills I will use for the rest of my career, participated in meaningful work, and had so much fun doing it.
One of my favorite memories from my internship was traveling with staff members and interns to the suburbs of Virginia for the weekend to encourage people to vote on election day. I woke up at the crack of dawn and sat in a small van, all the while discussing the election, our intended careers, our backgrounds, and our hopes for the future of the country, sharing laughs and small life stories. While knocking on doors, I met so many kind and interesting people and was able to bond with my colleagues in a very new way. Ultimately, adjusting my life plan to allow for an internship outside of my original goal afforded me so many unique opportunities like this one.

As it turns out, deviating from your initial plan and trusting your gut, your mom and your dogs is often the best option out there. There has not been a day I have regretted diverging from my plan, and in fact doing so has opened doors to international careers I had not previously considered. My advice: don’t be afraid to pursue opportunities that force you to adjust your original plan. You never know what doors will open and what experiences you’ll gain as a result!