Hi! I’m a sophomore at a top university hoping to get a summer internship at a think tank in D.C. (like pretty much everyone :P).
I was wondering whether it would be kosher to - for example - go to the Brookings webpage, navigate to a particular subsection of the webpage/institute that you are particularly interested in (e.x. U.S. Politics and Government), go through the list of researchers affiliated with that program and - should you find one whose work resonates with you - email them a cover letter and resume directly in hopes of assisting them over the summer?
I know there are formal application processes for (ex) Brookings, so I wasn’t sure if this would be considered rude or out of line.