What I Wish I Had Known About WAIP

Welcome to WAIP 1100, your crash course on what I wish I would have known before traveling to the big city! I am about halfway through my internship (I’m not crying, you’re crying) and I think I’ve learned a few pretty good tips along the way. Hopefully my advice will make it to the next semester of yo-pros ready to take on DC! Here are the five things I’ve come up with to keep you excited about DC and to get you ready for your next semester here.

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 1. Welcome to DC: You’re About to Learn a Whole Bunch of Acronyms

Did I ever think I would need to know how to find a CRS report about FNSUSDA funding under the current CR before the PBR comes out? Nope. Honestly it still sounds a little more like alphabet soup to me. How about knowing the meaning behind NIH, NSF, NNSA, NSA, SEC, FEC, FERC, FCC, CDC, or HELP (yes, I swear that one’s real and isn’t just me screaming into the void). Pro-Tip: act like you know what it means; try your hardest to remember the letters in order, wipe off that ‘deer in headlights’ look that’s on your face, and WRITE DOWN the actual meaning after you google it at the comfort of your own desk!

     2. Working 8 am – 5 pm is HARD

I always used to make fun of my parents for being tired after getting home from work around 5:30. Now, jokes on me; the second I walk through the door of the WAIP house I’m ready to go to bed. One day in DC feels like a week back in Columbus, and that has its own pros and cons. As tired as you will somehow be even if you just stare at a computer screen all day, try to get out and see things here. The museums are always open and there’s a McDonalds in Union Station, honestly what more do you need - opportunity awaits!

    3. People are Willing to Help You

This is a BIG one. Like most of you probably are, I’m from the Midwest. I definitely don’t pride myself on possessing the ability to elegantly enter pretty much any situation, especially one where I’m attempting to hand someone my business card. If anything, I’m just awkward (an absurd amount of the time). However, I am quickly discovering how willing people are to help interns, even with there being what seems like five million of us in DC at once. Ask for help when you need it, and follow up! I promise you’ll get the best advice from people who were in your shoes a few years ago.

   4. At Least One Person in Your Cohort Will See a Famous Senator or    

        Representative and Cry – Yes, Actual Tears

If you don’t have that person in mind already, the one that will make you cry just by existing (mine is Joe Kennedy – *swoon*), then you might think my fourth piece of advice is a little weird. Honestly maybe this isn’t even advice, just a heads up before you start crying in the middle of a rally full of people you don’t know! And get this, it hasn’t only happened to me; shall I recount the story about my roommate seeing Senator Sanders across the street? The one where she told him to have a ‘great day’ through tears? Future WAIPers, just think about the places you’ll go and the people you’ll meet!

However, do keep in mind that these people who work on the Hill every day, the ones that we see on TV and follow on Twitter, are exactly that, people. Trust me, I’m sure even Mr. Kennedy wakes up in the morning and has breakfast like me and you before he’s off to save the world through public policy. DC is just the place you get to actually interact with Congress people like him!

   5. Everything you thought about what you wanted in the future is about to change,  

         but in best way!

The point that I really hope you take away after reading this, is that what you get out of this experience is equivalent to all that you put in. So don’t be afraid to actually let yourself like living here! Throwback to when I told my mom I would no longer be coming to DC to participate in WAIP. Did I forget to mention that this was two nights before both of my parents had taken the day off work to drive me all the way out here? I guess you can tell by now that things with that plan didn’t exactly work out.

The reality is that being here marks the first time in my life in which I’ve lived away from Columbus. This is the first time in my life that I have ever questioned my future career path. And surprise, WAIP is still the best decision I think I have ever made! I am already figuring out how I’m going to get myself back here, and I haven’t even left yet. I have met some of the greatest people and cannot wait to see what opportunities my future holds thanks to good ole Senator John Glenn and the program he inspired.

Good luck to you & stay excited, welcome to WAIP!