Two students with a career advisor, seated at a booth, giving a high five

For Prospective Students

Value of an Internship

Internships allow students to explore career possibilities, develop contacts, learn new skills and expand on existing experience. Our team works throughout our students' first year to direct them toward the best internships given their specific career interests. Interns have worked all over the world in a wide scope of jobs and specialties.

View Globetrekkers
A booklet of student internship experiences (PDF)

Sector & Industries

Graduates found employment in the private, public and non-profit / multilateral sector while others pursued further education. Our graduates are employed in a wide range of industries throughout the word. Following is a sampling of key industries.

Pie charts/infographics showing graduates' employment data in various sectors and industries

Region

Infographic of a map of the continents, with data on regional employment percentages of graduates

Top 5 Cities

San Diego	San Francisco/ San Jose	Washington D.C.	Los Angeles	New York

Top International Cities

Tokyo	Seoul	Beijing

Top Employers

Africa

Brandon Callegari, MIA ’23

UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR), KIGALI, RWANDA

“I interned with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in their Kigali branch office this summer, working within the Development and Livelihoods Unit. My roles included researching the impacts of livelihood programs for refugees living in refugee camps throughout Rwanda, as well as performing data analysis on incoming livelihoods, economic inclusion, self-reliance, energy and related data. My day-to-day work involved creating briefings and reports based on the quantitative results that I found, which were used to assess current UNHCR operations in the field and update these operations. I spent much of my summer working on a longer-term project to create a new standardized self-reliance index, based on quantifiable socioeconomic indicators, for use in each of the refugee camps in Rwanda and possibly in other camps regionally. Working at the UNHCR this summer gave me an immensely valuable perspective on how international organizations not only work alongside the public and private sector to support refugees but also how these organizations are evolving to handle increasingly protracted refugee crises.”

Asia

Zach Belgum, MIA ‘23

MITSUBISHI RESEARCH INSTITUTE, TOKYO, JAPAN

“Within the Mitsubishi Research Institute, a consulting think tank, I was part of the Global Business Division, which oversees the company’s two overseas offices. On a day-to-day basis, I conducted research on Japanese investments in recent startups in Southeast Asia, attended various meetings and met new colleagues and student interns. In addition, I analyzed impact investment trends in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), pondering the linkage between startups and social investing. At the end of my internship, I got the opportunity to present my research to my entire team, advising the Mitsubishi Research Institute and Japanese companies on how they should approach future impact investment in Southeast Asia. This internship has shown me that Japanese companies have extensive networks, take good care of their employees and work very hard.”
Shivangi Gupta, MIA ‘23

KPMG IN INDIA

“This summer, I worked with KPMG in India, an organization mainly dealing with tax and audit consulting, as a trainee in Human Resources. My work focused on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in that I was tasked with reassessing their women’s employee resource group, KPMG’s Network of Women (KNOW). KNOW connects women from all levels in the organization and simultaneously contributes to wider EDI goals. I was able to learn and refine a broad range of skill sets during this summer, including conducting interviews, developing critical thinking and problemsolving skills and producing recommendations.”
Wenjie Tang, MIA ’23

MITSUBISHI RESEARCH INSTITUTE, TOKYO, JAPAN

“I interned at Mitsubishi Research Institute (MRI), the think tank and consulting branch of the Mitsubishi group, in Tokyo this summer. I worked with the economic policy department of the company and was responsible for collecting and analyzing macroeconomic news and data on the global supply chain and trade, assisting other group members in writing analysis reports and participating in research seminars with peers both inside and outside the company. The most fascinating part of this internship was putting into practice the skills I’d just acquired during our first year of study, including international economics and politics, econometric analysis and policy-related writing skills. It was also interesting to experience the different cultures in work, society and language in Japan as compared to the U.S.“

Europe

Ernesto Castañeda, MIA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN; HUMANIZING DEPORTATION PROJECT, UC DAVIS

“As part of my internship with Emzingo, which connects students with startups aligned with social impact principles, I chose to work with the nonprofit organization Puentes Global, a foundation whose mission is to promote employability. My team worked with Ukrainian refugees arriving in Madrid, delivering welcome packets containing information ranging from where to apply for insurance, find employment, enroll children into schools and more. Additionally, we connected various like-minded organizations and individuals with Puentes Global so that Ukrainians in Madrid could access online skills building that can be transferred worldwide and increase their employability. Along with my internship in Madrid, I had the opportunity to intern with the Humanizing Deportation Project, a community-based digital storytelling project documenting the human consequences of contemporary regimes of migration and border control in the U.S. and Mexico. My role consisted of going to different albergues (shelters) in Tijuana, recording audio from migrants who wanted to share their stories, and converting that footage into videos. This project holds a special place in my heart since I immigrated to California from Tijuana at 6 years old; it not only showed me a different side to my hometown that I never knew but also opened my eyes to what many migrants go through in their journey to enter the U.S. The stories we heard were heartbreaking and difficult to hear but are essential to share with the world.”
Isman Cyair, BA/MIA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN

“This summer I interned with Emzingo|U in Madrid, where I was placed in a group to help small social impact organizations. From the list of projects, I chose Puentes Global, an organization that aims to help immigrants and refugees in a new country. Our team worked as consultants to help Puentes Global assist Ukrainian refugees in Madrid. We interviewed Ukrainians and implemented lessons learned at GPS to do market research, built new relationships and created a welcome packet guide for Ukrainians arriving in Madrid. Meanwhile, we got to travel and have awesome fun, and I’m truly grateful to GPS for providing me with this fantastic experience!“
Emily Davalos, BA/MIA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN

“This summer I interned for Emzingo, a certified B corporation centered around social impact across the globe. I worked with a team of two other master’s students consulting for Deleitewear, a women-owned sustainable fashion company looking to expand their business. Daily tasks included legal and financial research imperative to understanding business expansion in Spain, meeting with our field partner to reassess and reframe our project and conducting interviews with stakeholders to understand the potential long-term impacts of this expansion project. Along with our daily work, we also explored the beautiful city of Madrid and learned a lot about dayto- day life, food and customs. This internship experience abroad allowed me to better understand a culture different from my own and build many strong relationships with people from all over the world.”
Jared Hernandez, MIA ‘23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN; HUMANIZING DEPORTATION PROJECT, UC DAVIS

“As part of my internship with Emzingo|U, which connects students with startups aligned with social impact principles, I chose to work with Deleitewear, which focuses on alleviating the impact of fast fashion by making garments out of recycled textiles, thereby reducing waste. My work included meeting with industry experts and researching Spanish law. Our team also analyzed Madrid’s value chain and sustainable fashion market to give our client recommendations. Because of this internship, I now have hands-on experience consulting, made friends from all over the world and explored Spain during my downtime. In addition to my consulting internship, I interned with UC Davis’ Humanizing Deportation Project, completing fieldwork, research and video production. This digital storytelling project documents contemporary issues of migration and deportation in the U.S. and Mexico, so I went to various shelters in Tijuana, gave food to migrants, recorded audio from migrants who wanted to share their stories, and converted that footage into videos. The stories I heard were intense and they helped me learn more about the struggles people go through to ensure the safety of their families. “
Yixiao (Adam) Huang, MCEPA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN

“As a member of the consulting group established by Emzingo|U, I joined students from other universities to design a business plan for Clevergy, a startup company focused on operating a platform intended to help people optimize their energy consumption. Not only did we scrutinize the room for opportunity in cutting costs for Spanish customers, which contributed greatly to the product positioning for the company, but we researched how to navigate through the current crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, in alignment with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) goals for Spain as well. In the course of more than a month’s research, our team provided the company with a comprehensive framework containing all the contents of traditional business solutions and electricity market research and prediction, in the hope that this nonprofit would gradually have a positive social impact in Spain.”
David Mendoza, MIA ‘23

REFUGEE SUPPORT EUROPE, NICOSIA, CYPRUS

“My post was at the Refugee Dignity Center in Nicosia, Cyprus’ capital city, which serves thousands of refugees who have recently left the Pournara camp. I was tasked with registering refugees into the organization as their first point of contact, as well as assisting in managing the database system and logistics. These tasks involved organizing the logistics of the center market supply to ensure stable inventory for refugees and guiding them in labor card application processes in accordance with the Cypriot government. This opportunity has been life-changing, as I have been directly involved in alleviating the refugee crisis in Cyprus and saw how policy and refugee politics affect the situation on the ground. I hope to use this experience in my pursuit of a career in diplomacy and foreign policy.”
Lesley Nogueda Pulido, MIA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN

“During my Emzingo internship, I had the honor of working with DoGood, a technology company that has created an app and platform for businesses to assign Environmental, Social, or Governance (ESG) challenges to their employees and track the results. Each challenge corresponds to a specific aspect of ESG engagement, is measurable and aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our team created a tool we named DoGood Sustainable Maturity Assessment (DSMA). It was a great professional experience to share ideas and create a tool the DoGood staff, including the CEO, liked. When I wasn’t in meetings with my team, Emzingo planned many lessons for us, which covered a variety of subjects that would ultimately assist us in some way with our project or with tasks we would undertake in the future as professionals. Emzingo’s staff also organized events that encouraged us to interact with the other members of the program, like scavenger hunts around the city, guided tours, workout sessions, food tasting and more. My time in Madrid is something that I won’t forget because of the great memories I made.”
Maykent Salazar, MIA ’23

EMZINGO|U, MADRID, SPAIN

“For my project through Emzingo, I worked with CleanUp Bio, a female-led, zerowaste retail business that sought to expand operations in Spain. Our main role as consultants was to determine our client’s target market profile and generate a sales strategy that aligned with the company’s mission and values. To meet our objective, Emzingo trained us in a variety of different topics such as corporate social responsibility, unconscious bias, social entrepreneurship, etc., and assigned us a mentor and coach to support us throughout the project. Along with our daily work, the Emzingo crew would often take us on small trips to explore beautiful Madrid and learn about Spanish traditions and culture (siestas included). This internship was super enriching and definitely one of the best professional experiences I have ever had.“

Latin America

Ezra Kraus, MIA ’23

COAST2COAST, LOBITOS, PERU

“As a passionate environmentalist with interests in ocean conservation and Latin America, I connected with Coast2Coast in Lobitos, Peru — a nonprofit using audiovisual tools, education and storytelling to empower at-risk youth living in fishing villages across Peru and Southeast Asia — for my summer internship. I chose to accept this internship because of the grassroots impact that their work achieves, to gain skills in nonprofit management and to work in a Spanish-speaking environment. My main task for C2C was to develop a volunteer program to bring students from around the world to the shores of Peru. I worked in a small group with the founders and other interns from Peru to build partnerships with universities and volunteer organizations, as well as build the infrastructure for the program, including tracking applications, creating policies, developing marketing schemes, posting to job boards, creating content and completing research. Overall, it’s been an extremely rewarding experience to start their volunteer program from the ground up; I gained vital skills in nonprofit business management.”
Joey Persico, MIA ’23

CLAYHANDS, BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA

“I spent eight weeks based in Bogotá, Colombia, working for Clayhands, a nonprofit organization that aims to spread self-sufficiency through earth-building skills in rural Colombia and South America. The first part of my internship consisted of learning how nonprofits in Colombia work. Unlike in the U.S., setting up a nonprofit in Colombia is an expensive and complicated process, so I became familiar with the bureaucratic steps that need to be taken annually to keep the organization operational. After becoming familiar with how a nonprofit is run, I helped with logistics and planning for different projects in Colombia. While most of my work was based in Bogotá, I had the opportunity to travel to one of Clayhands’ project sites in the town of San Pablo de Borbur. While there, I attended meetings with the mayor of the town as well as several of the stakeholders in the project. We also visited the actual project site, where I learned about the process of making adobe bricks. After returning to Bogotá, I created a short video about the Clayhands organization and the project in Borbur. During my internship, I learned much more than I could have imagined, made great friends and immersed myself in a different, exciting culture. I will definitely be going back to Colombia in the future!“

U.S.-East

Anna Kraemer, MIA ‘23

CENTER FOR ASIA PACIFIC STRATEGY (CAPS)

“At CAPS, a nonprofit think tank focused on international security in the Asia Pacific region, I had two main projects: the maritime security series and the China Insights series. The maritime security series had concluded, and I wrote policy recommendations and a final report based on the panel discussions. I was also in charge of planning the China Insights series, which will consist of two online panel discussions and one in-person conference in late 2023. This internship has given me the experience necessary to pursue a career focused on development and security in the Asia Pacific region. I’ve gained specialized knowledge on maritime security, an aspect of national security I’ve never previously learned about, as well as nuances of the effects of Chinese foreign policy. I’ve also made connections with national security experts and been able to listen in on panel discussions where these experts outline their unique view on foreign policy. I’m very excited for my future career, and CAPS has given me an amazing first step into my vision.“
Jaha McClean, MIA ’23

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, BUREAU OF OCEANS, INTERNATIONAL, ENVIRONMENTAL AND SCIENTIFIC AFFAIRS (OES), OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COOPERATION (STC)

“The Office of Science and Technology Cooperation (STC) is a science and technology policy office within the Department of State that negotiates science and technology agreements with other countries, coordinates joint training and expert exchanges between the U.S. and other countries and implements international components of certain science and tech-related executive orders and bills. During my internship, I have worked on the implementation of a science and tech-related executive order and drafted some of the talking points that will be delivered to our intentional counterparts, along with crafting a report that will be distributed to our embassies and consulates across the world. I also utilized my Japanese language abilities to translate a Japanese document related to updates on one of their science and technology policies, attended meetings with the OES bureau head and attended town halls with high-ranking officials within the Department of State. I have learned so much about foreign affairs, diplomacy, negotiations, science and technology policy and the latest innovations through this internship.”
Hana Moumen, MPP ’23

NATIONAL DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATION

“The National Defense Industrial Association drives strategic dialogue in national security by identifying key issues and leveraging the knowledge and experience of its military, government, industry and academic members to address them. As a researcher, I contributed quantitative research on high-profile cases pertaining to economic inflation and U.S. national defense, working in collaboration with former U.S. Secretary of Defense David Norquist. I led research on industry trends, policy points and the annual Vital Signs report about the health and readiness of the U.S military industrial base, focusing on strategic performance, data analysis, surveys, policy white papers and policymakers engagement. My articles on geospatial intelligence and military technology will soon be published in National Defense Magazine. This internship gave me the opportunity to develop my expertise in military strategy, use my data skills to produce high-quality research and suggest effective, real-world policy recommendations, strengthening my interest in technology and security issues.“
Sunny (Qingai) Xu, BA/MPP ‘23

AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE, WASHINGTON, D.C.

“This summer, I interned as a data intern at the American Enterprise Institute, a public policy think tank based in Washington, D.C. My roles included conducting data analysis and writing reports for various long- and short-term projects, including using natural language processing (NLP) to analyze the typology of all the followers of AEI Education Twitter account and the main account and presenting them to the media team. Moreover, I worked with a data analyst to build a data pipeline that web scrapes school districts’ websites, with all sentences processed by machine learning models. I also used QGIS and Python for other geospatial data analysis needed for different projects. Working at AEI this summer has helped me to develop practical data analysis skills and communication skills, especially how to communicate findings to people without a quantitative background, and helped me gain more knowledge about American education policy and how think tanks operate.“

U.S.-West

Katrina Boyd, MPP ’23

SAN DIEGO REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (SDRCC), SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“I interned with the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, an advocacy organization representing more than 2,500 members and approximately 300,000 jobs. As a public policy intern, I researched regional issues impacting the business community in the following areas: sustainability and industry, climate action, small business and economic development. This involved drafting policy committee briefs, reviewing city and county agendas, preparing talking points and speaking at public meetings. I also tracked key economic indicators and leveraged my quantitative skills to create simple but compelling data visualizations. This internship gave me a firsthand look at how the business community directly engages on critical policy issues to promote sustainable economic growth in the region.”
Delana Du, MPP ’23

SAN DIEGO COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“As a policy analyst intern at the San Diego County Taxpayers Association, my responsibility was to research the housing market. The primary question I focused on was what is driving housing supply – in other words, what is driving the lack of affordable housing? To answer these questions, I looked into county databases and examined governance factors that could have a potential impact on housing supply and affordability. The research skills and knowledge I gained from my first year at GPS were essential to me during my internship.”
Clayton Haglund, MPP ‘23

INTERTRIBAL COURT OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, VALLEY CENTER, CALIFORNIA

“I interned at the Intertribal Court of Southern California, located on Rincon Band of Luiseño land and serving 19 Southern California tribes. I helped to put together a data-driven snapshot of the health of the Southern California Native community to help the court better cater their efforts to the areas most in need. This has meant searching for data from various sources and conducting empirical analysis wherever possible. This hands-on experience has been invaluable, as I have learned a ton about U.S. and Native American law and furthered my knowledge of data analysis tools.”
Sophie Hargrave, MIA ’23

CENTER FOR COMMUNITY ENERGY, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“The Center for Community Energy is a nonprofit based in San Diego County that conducts research and promotes sustainable solutions to counteract climate change. My main task as a public policy intern was to conduct community outreach to tenant advocacy organizations, contractors and management companies to identify how the county could incentivize the switch from gas water heaters to all-electric heat pump units in apartment complexes. I also connected with the San Diego Tenants Union and helped to organize an in-person meeting with tenants to gather community input as to how the county can properly incentivize this sustainable transition. The main thing I have learned from this internship is that energy policy affects many parties: homeowners, landlords, managers, maintenance workers, contractors, electricians, plumbers, tenants and more. However, through meaningful conversations with impacted parties, we can better inform the county of what is needed to create successful policies.”
John Kim, MIA ’23

CALIFORNIA 39TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT OFFICE, PLACENTIA, CALIFORNIA

“As a member of the consulting group established by Emzingo|U, I joined students from other universities to design a business plan for Clevergy, a startup company focused on operating a platform intended to help people optimize their energy consumption. Not only did we scrutinize the room for opportunity in cutting costs for Spanish customers, which contributed greatly to the product positioning for the company, but we researched how to navigate through the current crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, in alignment with Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) goals for Spain as well. In the course of more than a month’s research, our team provided the company with a comprehensive framework containing all the contents of traditional business solutions and electricity market research and prediction, in the hope that this nonprofit would gradually have a positive social impact in Spain.”
Ashley Morrison, MPP ’23

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE, EL CAJON, CALIFORNIA

“My internship with the International Rescue Committee focused on their Women in Business initiative. In this role, I assisted program directors tasked with managing clients’ progress at various points of the business development process and navigating the obstacles often specific to the migrant/refugee experience. My duties included the creation of outreach material for the department’s various trainings and workshops, recording clients’ progress and assisting clients in the completion of small business grant applications. I was also able to assist in some event planning through the IRC’s Fair@44th International market, which serves as a platform to highlight and heighten the awareness of client businesses. With this internship, I have furthered my knowledge of the day-to-day functions of a large nonprofit organization, balanced with the independence of working on a smaller team. Most importantly, I deepened my understanding of the continued challenges faced by refugee women as they work diligently to build their futures.”
Manuel Reyes, BA/MIA ’23

SAN DIEGO REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE; AFGHAN EVAC COALITION, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“As an external affairs intern for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, I was a part of several meetings with different government officials in the city, county, state and sometimes federal levels to ensure that we were advocating for policies that aligned with our members’ values and benefiting the working class of San Diego. I focused primarily on land use and transportation policy helping address the housing crisis San Diego is experiencing and working hard to ensure more affordable housing was available for the working class, retirees, veterans, minorities and recent college graduates. I worked closely with many different local organizations, businesses, and government offices to promote the chamber’s mission to make San Diego the best place to work and live. As an intern for the Afghan Evac Coalition, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring together organizations with a shared commitment to fulfilling the U.S.’ duty to our at-risk Afghan allies and friends, I had the opportunity to take part in many of the meetings we had with our partners in the government, such as the Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs and the White House National Security Council. I was even a part of a productive meeting the coalition had with U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, where he promised to help us achieve our goals in our mission to save Afghan lives. Working with Afghan Evac has been a great opportunity to see the good work that can be done when humanitarian nonprofits, government agencies, private sector companies and everyday civilians collaborate to help our Afghan allies."
Salma Shaikh, MPP ’23

FOOD HAVEN (GPS CONSULTING CLUB), SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

“Food Haven is a software startup that provides a platform for restaurants to list their leftover food at the end of the day that consumers can purchase at a discounted price. My task was to identify a potential new revenue stream utilizing the new food laws being rolled out regarding food waste in California. I researched food waste policies in effect and also those that will be rolled out in the near future, prepared a competitor analysis for food waste infrastructure in other cities, summarized California-wide contract regulations and requirements regarding food waste and created a business case identifying where Food Haven could provide software to assist with compliance enforcement with California food waste laws, in the form of multiple potential revenue models. This internship gave me the opportunity to be presented with a problem with little existing knowledge or research currently available and come up with a succinct set of solutions for our client. It has made me very excited to potentially pursue a career in consulting.
Katie Simonian, MPP ’23

CIPRIANO VARGAS FOR VISTA MAYOR, VISTA, CALIFORNIA

“This summer, I worked as a policy fellow for Cipriano Vargas on his campaign for mayor of Vista. My duties included assisting on event planning, fundraising, canvassing, policy research, opposition research and voter outreach. I learned many different platforms used by the campaign, such as Constant Contact (email campaigns), ActBlue (fundraising), Callhub (text campaigns), Canva (graphics) and PDI (regional data). I was able to work directly with Vargas to learn the ins and outs of campaign flow. My job included a lot of outreach through phone calls and going door-to-door, enabling me to communicate directly with voters and learn about what issues were most important to them. I also made relationships with many of his supporters and planned fundraising and meet-and-greet events for everyone to learn about Vargas’ platform. It was a really great experience to learn about problems that people are dealing with and help Vargas find ways to combat these issues.“
Viora Soetedo, MPP ‘23

SUPERVISOR JOEL ANDERSON, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“My internship duties included policy research, constituent contact, government agency engagement, research projects, community outreach initiative support, administration and operation of databases, and public speaking. One of my favorite professional experiences was representing the supervisor at a ribbon-cutting event organized by the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. I wrote certificates of appreciation, presented them to the new company and gave a speech of gratitude. Additionally, I worked on the Julian and Alpine community coffee events, canvassing participants and asking them if they had any issues or concerns to add to the agenda. Overall, my summer internship benefited me in that I was directly involved in the implementation of programs that facilitate policy analysis and proposal development.”
Elise Spencer, MIA ‘23

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ENTERPRISES (IDE)

“I am passionate about international development; therefore, throughout my internship search I sought opportunities that focused on development issues, particularly poverty alleviation. I was excited to start my journey into the field of development at International Development Enterprises (iDE), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to create income livelihood opportunities for poor, rural households. My main focus was on opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa, on which I conducted market research on geographic expansion, analyzed data and reported on the operating environment, government frameworks, infrastructure and business development opportunities in the region. This internship has been instrumental in providing me with the toolkit to operate in an environment predicated on improving the lives of the most vulnerable and developing solutions to eradicate poverty.“
Tino Tirado, MPP ‘23

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE (IRC), SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA (REMOTE)

“In my internship with the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) Immigration and Citizenship Services department, I assisted legal representatives that were aiding clients across the San Diego area in navigating the U.S. immigration process. My duties included serving as a liaison between clients and legal representatives and drafting applications alongside the legal representatives for a variety of immigration forms, such as DACA renewals, asylum seekers, work authorization, family reunification, legal permanent residence and citizenship, etc. I also assisted the immigration coordinator with drafting outreach documents for two family reunification programs with which the IRC assisted: one program targeting reunifying Central American minors with family members in the U.S. and one for immediate family members of refugees and asylum seekers of certain nationalities under the P-3 category of refugee admissions. I also conducted direct outreach by contacting previous IRC clients and completing intake forms with them to determine if they may meet the eligibility requirements for these programs.“
Christine (Yuting) Wan, MIA ’23

CENTER FOR COMMUNITY ENERGY (CCE); GPS CONSULTING CLUB; INSTITUTE ON GLOBAL CONFLICT AND COOPERATION

“This summer I interned in three different positions, two in the electric vehicle (EV) industry. Through the internships, I have developed a more profound sense of the EV/battery/energy industry and decided to dive into the supply chain problem with batteries being manufactured and sold around the world. This problem is closely related to the national strategy of the U.S., with China also playing a significant role, which perfectly paired with the knowledge I’ve gained at GPS. I’ve also gained a great deal of soft skills, such as teamwork, communication, client meeting preparation, draft progress presentations and more. I’m really grateful for having such wonderful opportunities, and they all contributed greatly to my career development.“
Yuchen Wang, MPP ’23

GEMINIBIO (GPS CONSULTING CLUB)

“Geminibio is a distributor dedicated to providing suppliers of chemical raw materials and laboratory supplies from different regions entering the U.S. market. Our team’s task was to identify the opportunities and challenges faced by Asian brands and to propose a specific entry strategy for the company. I was responsible for data analysis and used data thinking to analyze problems and as evidence to support the strategic actions we proposed. The biggest thing I learned from this internship is that my analysis had value to real-world companies, and that made me feel even more determined to go deeper in the direction of data analysis.“
Brenna Wayne, MIA ’23

GPS CONSULTING CLUB, GEMINIBIO

“This summer I interned with the GPS Consulting Club as an analyst intern on their project with Geminibio, a distributor for basic chemicals, antibodies, enzymes and other materials from vendors in Eastern Europe and China to buyers in the U.S. My work involved analyzing tariff code trends, compiling lists of potential clients, researching import regulations and developing a go-to-market strategy for Chinese companies. Through this work I have developed a variety of skills such as communicating with clients, completing research as a team and succinctly presenting our findings. This internship has also informed my job search by introducing me to the world of consulting. I am excited to continue to learn more about consulting and apply the skills I have learned to future positions after graduation.
Andrea Velazquez Acevedo, BA/MIA ’23

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ENTERPRISES (IDE GLOBAL)

“International Development Enterprises (iDE) is a non-government organization dedicated to ending poverty. We design and deliver market-based solutions in agriculture, water, sanitation and hygiene in 11 different countries across Asia, Africa and Central America. My main tasks as a business development intern included conducting market research and data analysis on geographic expansion and operating environments in Latin America; reporting on government frameworks, infrastructure and business development opportunities within the Latin American region; and supporting live bids for grants and contracts. Given my passion for development, I am very happy that I have been able to learn more about the inner workings of nonprofit management and development work.“
Ana Zapata, MIA ’23

CENTER FOR U.S.-MEXICAN STUDIES, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

“I have been helping Associate Director Catheryn Camacho with the planning and execution of the center’s three summer seminars on tax law, renewable energy and U.S. political institutions. The participants were mainly Mexican government officials and people from Mexico’s private sector. Though the majority of these classes were taught online, each seminar had an in-person component. For three consecutive weeks, around 35 participants came to GPS for the in-person seminar, which included career-based field trips. In a short period of time, I learned a lot about foreign affairs and, most importantly, had the opportunity to network with people from a number of different career sectors in Mexico.“
Milena Zeray, MIA ‘23

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA (REMOTE)

“This summer I interned remotely with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) as an immigration intern in San Diego, California. Working with the legal representatives has been really exciting, as I get to see firsthand how the immigration process works. Some of the tasks assigned to me include contacting clients about submitting paperwork or missing documents, notifying clients about upcoming appointments, working in IRC’s database and preparing clients’ files. One cool part of this internship was that I was able to translate for a client who only speaks Tigrinya, which is my native language. I am so glad to have had the opportunity to intern with an amazing organization that is making positive impacts on people’s lives.“