Spring
into March --
The
motto for March is "in like a lion, out like
a lamb" -- referring to how the wind arrives
intensely but departs softly. This motto can be
good for something else other than flying kites;
use this motto as advice to land yourself a great
internship this summer!
Translation:
Be assertive applying for internships in the beginning
and at the end of March you'll be able to relax
because you’ll have an fabulous internship lined
up, or some great options to choose from. March
is the critical time for lining up summer opportunities,
so use our step-by-step process to guide you through.
1.
The Perfect Resume
2.
Cover Letter
3.
Researching Internships/Networking
4.
Applying
5.
Interviewing
6.
Apply for these internships!
7.
Announcements
| WAND
and WiLL and STAND celebrate the newest progressive
women elected to Congress at the 2005 Capitol
Hill Reception |
| 
In
the photo, we see Gwen Moore at the reception
on March 2, 2005 (center), with some dynamic
young women from STAND.
For
more information (and more photos!), click
here.
|
1. The
Perfect Resume
The
first step to finding a great internship is having
a snappy, streamlined resume.
Staring
at a blank page can be daunting, so try using a
resume template to help you get started (these can
be found at www.monster.com), typing the word "resume"
into Google, or using the template on Microsoft
Word.
Your
resume needs to be streamlined and succinct.
- Make
sure that you use the same format throughout the
document and use bullet points instead of paragraph
descriptions.
- Make
sure your name and contact information is clearly
written at the top.
- List
work experience starting from your most recent
experience.
- Try
to limit your resume to only a page if you can;
edit it down by listing only the most pertinent
work experience.
- Be
sure to include any extracurricular activities,
volunteer experience, and special skills you have.
2.
Cover Letter
A
cover letter is your introduction to the organization/company/individual
that you are applying to. It is the subjective
counterpart to your objective resume. The purpose
of the cover letter is to convey both your interests
and skill set and how those can be applied to fit
the job description.
A
general cover letter is a good framework to work
from and may suffice for certain applications. However,
for the best results, it is advisable to tailor
each cover letter to address specific job descriptions
and employers.
Your
cover letter should accomplish the following:
1) Introduce yourself.
2) Address the specific position you are applying
for.
3) State why you want the position and what you
would bring to it.
4) Mention the organization’s goals/mission
statement and how it works with your own personal
beliefs. Also mention how you would help
further goals/mission statement.
5) Include a statement concerning follow-up
and how you can be reached.
3.
Researching Internships/Networking
So
once you've got your resume and a general cover
letter down, you can begin searching for internships.
A
great place to start is figure out what general
field you'd be interested in working in, or what
particular skills you'd like to gain from a summer
internship.
The
following are ways to research/network to find out
about internship opportunities.
1)
Contact STAND by e-mail or phone and we'll
work with you to find one.
2)
Ask parents/friends of the family for suggestions.
3)
Go to a mentor and ask for suggestions/help researching.
4)
Think of organizations/companies you are interested
in working with and search around on their website;
oftentimes, they will list internship opportunities
there.
5)
Search on Google; type in the city name
and kind of internship you are interested in. Ex.
"Atlanta, law internships" or "Orlando,
nonprofit internships"
6)
A really great source for searching progressive
internships and jobs is www.idealist.org.
On the right side of the main page you can search
for jobs or internships.
7)
Go to a counselor/teacher/career center at your
school for more internship opportunities.
8)
Always read the Holler for internship opportunities
posted just for you!
4.
Applying
When
you are applying for a job, pay attention to the
following things:
1)
First of all, don't be intimidated by the application
process. If you have a number of jobs you
are thinking about applying to, apply to the ones
you are least interested in first. It will be good
practice for when you apply to the jobs that you
are more excited about.
2)
When applying for a job, try to research a little
about the company/organization and take a few notes. Find
out what they do/what their mission is, history
of their organization, what the job description
looks like, etc.
3)
When researching internships/jobs pay special attention
to names or pertinent contact information; see if
any one particular person is hiring. It's
always better to address a specific person than
a general office if you can.
4)
Send your resume/cover letter (whatever they ask
for) in to the particular person or to the general
e-mail/address.
5)
If you send an e-mail and you are sending a cover
letter and resume, be sure to include a brief message
in the body of your e-mail. It may seem
redundant, but it can get you noticed.
6)
Make sure to make a follow-up phone call to check
to see if they got your application.
5.
Interviewing
Pre-interview:
1)
Practice what you're going to say before you go,
it will help you relax during the interview. Most
interviews will ask the same questions. Use these
sample questions to practice:
a.
Tell me a little about yourself.
b.
Why do you want this internship/job?
c.
Why do you want to work with this company?
d.
What are your positive/negative qualities?
e.
What is your ideal work setting?
f. What
will you bring to the organization/fulfill the organization's
mission, etc.?
g.
What do you do when you are assigned a task and
you don't know how to do it?
h.
Are you good at time management?
2)
Think of a few questions you want to ask, so you
can be in control of some of the interview, and
it shows that you've been thinking about the position.
3)
Think about what good qualities about yourself you
want to highlight and make sure to work them into
the interview.
4)
Dress for success; overdressing is better
than underdressing in this situation. Wear a suit
if you have one; if you don't, be sure to dress
in neat and clean business attire (e.g., no midriff
showing, wet hair, or flip flops, or tennis shoes).
5)
Be on time or early. This will probably
be your first interaction with your interviewers
so you want to make a good impression. Being late
reflects very negatively on you from the get-go. If
you're doing a phone interview, make sure you are
near your phone for at least 20 minutes before and
after the scheduled interview time as they might
not call right on time.
6)
Give a firm handshake, speak clearly, and make eye
contact. Smile and give confident answers.
Feel free to stick around and make conversation
with your interviewer if they seem open to it (you’re
goal is to make a lasting impression)
7)
Answer the question! This seems redundant,
but make sure you answer the question.
8)
Afterwards be sure to send a thank you card/e-mail
thanking your interviewer for taking the
time out to meet with you.
6.
Apply for these internships!
Now
that you have this step-by-step guideline, put your
skills to use by applying for the internships outlined
below!
WOMEN
FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL – Washington DC
Program Intern
Founded in 1993, Women for Women International
is a non-profit, humanitarian organization dedicated
to providing women survivors of war with the education,
economic and interpersonal tools and resources they
need to move from crisis and poverty and into stability
and self-sufficiency.
Please send two (2) references, writing sample (3-5
pages), cover letter detailing relevant experience
and why you would like to work at Women for Women
International and a resume no later than Friday,
March 25th to:
ATTN: Intern Coordinator
Women for Women International
1850 M Street, NW
Suite 1090
Washington, DC 20036
Fax: 202.293.0853
*humanresources@womenforwomen.org*
(preferred)
*Reference Program Intern in the subject line of
e-mail applications*
Qualifications:
•Exposure to international women's programs
•Must be familiar with issues related to gender
and development
•Ability to adapt in a fast pace and change-oriented
environment
•Familiarity with Microsoft Word and word processing
•Strong organizational skills and ability to meet
deadlines
•A commitment to Women for Women International’s
mission and vision
•Track the Virtual Bazaar program
•Assist Program staff in administration and management
of Country office programs
•Work with Sponsorship staff when needed in administration
of sponsorship program
THE
JOAN B. KROC INSTITUTE FOR PEACE & JUSTICE –
San Diego, CA
Peace & Conflict Studies Internship
Interns at the IPJ will have the opportunity
to learn how a nongovernmental educational institution
works, and to become knowledgeable on conflict and
human rights issues through their research and writing
experience at the IPJ. Interns will be responsible
for researching, writing, editing, and publishing
a weekly update that will address the peace and
conflict resolution process in several countries
and regions.
Start date:
June 06, 2005
End date:
August 26, 2005
Last day to apply:
March 30, 2005
To Apply: Please visit http://www.sandiego.edu/ipj/ and click
on "Programs," then "Internship Opportunities"
to download an application form and view other requirements.
If you have additional questions, please write to
emccollim@sandiego.edu.
Qualifications:
• Enrollment, with senior status, in an undergraduate
program; or enrollment in a graduate program; or
a recent degree in a field related to peace studies,
human rights, or international relations.
• GPA of 2.75 or higher.
• Excellent writing skills.
• Minimum time commitment of 15 hours per week.
Non-Paid
Internship Opportunity
National
Center for Human Rights Education
The
National Center for Human Rights Education (NCHRE)
is an educational organization that looks to build
a human rights movement in the United States by
training community leaders and student activists
to apply human rights standards to issues of injustice.
We are looking for dedicated people who want to
help support this vision.
If
you have a few hours each week Monday- Friday between
9-5pm and are looking to support human rights work
then we have the internship opportunity for you.
NCHRE is currently working with a number of community
and nationwide collaborative action projects and
need individuals who can help with some of the day
to day office activities. We will offer all volunteers
an opportunity to receive the basic Human Rights
101 training and participate in NCHRE events.
We
are looking for individuals who would be interested
in…
- Supporting
administrative duties
- Assisting
with events
- Helping
program staff prepare for trainings
- Participating
with UDHR distribution
Please
Contact: Malika Redmond, Volunteer Internship Coordinator
: malikar@nchre.org
| (678)904-2640
7.
Announcements
YOSHIYAMA
AWARD ONLINE NOMINATION PROCESS NOW OPEN
The Hitachi Foundation Yoshiyama Award recognizes
high school seniors who have distinguished themselves
through extensive service and
leadership in their communities:
http://www.grantstation.com/index.asp#eighteen
2006 JOYCE AWARD
Funded by the Joyce Foundation of Chicago, the Joyce
Awards support projects that advance the creation
and production of works by minority
artists in dance, music, theater, and visual arts:
http://www.grantstation.com/index.asp#twenty
FUNDING
FOR NATIONAL YOUTH AND SCIENTIFIC EDUCATION PROGRAMS
American
Honda Foundation supports projects in the areas
of youth and scientific education. The Foundation
makes grants to K-12 and higher education institutions,
vocational or trade schools, scholarship and fellowship
programs, scientific and education-related nonprofit
organizations, national youth educational or scientific
programs, national educational radio or television
stations, nationally
distributed and aired films, movies, film strips,
slides and/or short subjects concerning youth and/or
scientific education, and a variety of
other programs focused on youth or science education.
Nonprofit organizations with projects that are national
in scope are eligible to
apply.
The
next application deadline is May 1, 2005. Visit
the website for more information.
FYI…
Wanna
get the real scoop on social security? Get
the Facts and get on board. Rock the Vote is gearing
up for a huge national campaign to give young people
a voice on Social Security as the President and
Congress sit down to make changes that will affect
our lives. Go to www.rockthevote.com for more information
