I was recently rejected from the Fulbright-UK Summer Institute after short-listing and an interview, and I was wondering, in general terms, how prestigious are Federal internships in D.C.? I’m also a short-listed applicant for the CAPAL program, which has an acceptance rate of around 10% and pays summer interns a stipend of $3500. Interns have received placement at USAID, US Department of Agriculture, the US Forestry service, and etc. With regards to public policy, are these internships comparable to programs like those at top i-Banking in finance or Gilman/Fulbright Summer Institute scholarships for study abroad? Are they at the top with a strong “snowball” effect? I’m just trying to get a frame of reference for how much of a leg up the CAPAL Federal Internship might give me as I have little to no sense of perspective on the “prestige ladder” of public policy internships. I’m a first-year if that matters.