FAQ

As a graduating senior spending my last semester in college as an intern in Washington, D.C., there is one question I have received more times than I can count since I arrived here seven weeks ago:

Why the $#@% are you spending your final semester in college away from campus? Do you hate fun? Do you have no friends? Did your parents force you come to come here?

Okay, so it’s really only the first part of the question that people usually ask. But I have to answer it probably three or four times a week. So I’d like to use this blog post as a means of rehearsing my answer for the next time I inevitably get asked why I would voluntarily choose to give up a semester  hiding from my responsibilities on High Street while I still can.

Here goes.

Ahem: “Great question, Sir/Madam, I’m glad you asked! I just simply adore learning and networking and working my tail off. I think I’ve really outgrown the whole carefree college lifestyle and am ready to take on more responsibility. Are you hiring? Please hire me.”

Okay fine, that’s probably not the best response. I’m still learning the whole “networking” thing.

But in reality, I’ve spent all 22 years of my life in Central Ohio. Sure I’ve traveled here and there, but I’ve never had the experience of living, working, and assimilating in a completely new city. At this time last year, I was planning on graduating in December (a semester early), and then presumably begin searching for entry-level jobs in Columbus. Looking back now, if I had graduated in December, one of my greatest regrets of college would be never taking advantage of OSU’s endless opportunities to experience more of the world than Columbus, Ohio – as precious as she is. The cultural spectacles, historical landmarks, and unbelievable human intelligence I encounter on a daily basis, all while being surrounded by buckeye pride right here in Washington, are more than enough to justify skipping out from my last hoorah on campus. Last weekend I saw a performance at a world-class Shakespeare theatre literally two blocks from my house. And hiding from my responsibilities in a Smithsonian for hours on end is easily more enjoyable than hiding from them on High Street. Oh and I guess it helps that I’m building a professional network, learning career skills, and figuring out how to be an adult while I’m here too. The prospect of graduating and finding a big kid job is slightly less terrifying, thanks to WAIP.

Please hire me

Adam White