Should I intern at the Pentagon?

Career Opportunities & Internships
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<p>This fall I'm starting my senior year of high school, so this is really my last summer to have everything I'm putting in my college applications. </p>

<p>Right now I have a 3.63 GPA, my SAT score comes out next week, and I won't take my ACT until April.</p>

<p>My dad can hook me up with an internship at the Department of Defense, but nothing I want to do is going to be military related. Do you guys think that despite the internship is unrelated to anything I want to do in life, that it would help me get into a great college like UCLA?</p>

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<p>It wouldn’t hurt, but it wouldn’t help. Many people get summer jobs as lifeguards, camp counselors, foodservice workers, retail workers, landscapers, etc. These jobs are no less impressive than an “internship” at the DoD, since the reality is that you would probably just be pushing papers, getting coffee and doing other mindless tasks for the DoD. The difference is that you would get to meet new friends at other jobs, but I doubt you would get much interaction with people your age in the Pentagon.</p>

<p>Having an employment history will help in any college application; what KIND of employment that is doesn’t really matter unless you started your own business and are employing yourself (obviously, that’s pretty impressive stuff).</p>

<p>Of course, this is just the experience I’ve had, and I applied to college a while ago now, so it may be worth talking to your college counselor about this.</p>

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<p>Internships often look far better on applications than traditional jobs–especially if they are in in an applicant’s area of interest. </p>

<p>Are you sure nothing at the Pentagon is in your career area? I mean an internship at THE PENTAGON looks pretty freaking good on an app, and if you can make it apply to an area of interest, then you’d certainly have a leg up. Also keep in mind that your major is more likely to change than not at this point. </p>

<p>Another thing to consider is the connections you will make there. There are tons of government “contractors” that might be in your field. </p>

<p>Also, consider finding an internship in your area of interest. Do this now, so you can avoid the rush of other applicants. Most good spots will be taken before school ends for the year. </p>

<p>Finally, note that many internships are paid (though less for HS students I would imagine), so you may be able to make some cash and get that good experience/r</p>

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<p>Are you sure? With the exception of Wall St type jobs, DOD has almost every career path (HR, finance, program management, business types, policy, psychologists, engineers, teachers, trainers, support staff, social science research analysts, scientists, logistics, economics, graphic design, communication, public affairs, etc etc etc)</p>

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<p>While that is true when we are talking about internships for college juniors, it is almost NEVER true for high school students.</p>

<p>If you are doing administrative tasks - typing things up, getting coffee, organizing paperwork, etc. - then you are not taking part in a true internship; you are just doing a job.</p>

<p>An internship is defined by the amount that you learn about a given industry. Here is an example of two things that may be called internships by different people:
A) Employment by the law firm Davis Polk as support staff. Duties include filing briefs, mailing letters, organizing paperwork, etc. Requirement is that employee has a HS diploma (or is close to getting one) and is pursuing a bachelor’s degree. Summer employment may lead to future summer employment but will never lead to a full time position.
B) Employment by the law firm Davis Polk as a summer associate. Duties include the same duties as first-year associates - legal research, drafting motions, supporting partners. Requirement is that employee has a bachelor’s degree and is pursuing a law degree at an accredited law school. Summer employment may lead to future summer employment but is, primarily, designed to lead to a full time position.</p>

<p>Job A can be called an internship, but it does not give any specialized experience, will not lead to a full time offer and can be accomplished by nearly anyone in nearly any industry. Job B, on the other hand, can also be called an internship; however, it is specifically designed to groom full time employees, gives specialized experience that supplements university study and gives employees a realistic understanding of the job that a full time employee will perform.</p>

<p>It is my argument that Job A does NOTHING more to help a resume than a job as a busboy, golf caddy, retail store clerk or anything else, and merely calling it an “internship” doesn’t change that fact: you can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig. Job B, on the other hand, clearly helps the resume of a law student looking to get a job as a lawyer.</p>

<p>The value of an “internship” that can only be called such because someone decided to call it that instead of a “job” is diluted even further when applying to colleges. It is entirely unrealistic to expect a high school student to have an internship; it is unrealistic that a high school student with an internship would be performing any tasks that qualify him for admission to a university that could not be accomplished just as well through any other summer job.</p>

<p>Don’t forget that we’re talking about a high school student. Connections can theoretically be made, but when we’re talking about someone who isn’t going to be entering the work force for at LEAST five years, these “connections” are severely diluted, and they are nearly meaningless for college admissions.</p>

<p>As I said the first time, I encourage the OP to explore many options. This could be a good one, especially if there are no opportunities elsewhere… but of my friends, none who had “internships” in high school fared any better in college admissions or full time employment recruitment than those who had regular old summer jobs in high school. The OP has several more summers to make some cash, make some friends, avoid job-related stress and just enjoy life.</p>