A Taste of the "Real World"—Summer Internships in College

Council Member Anya Rasulova, Claes Nobel Academic Scholarship recipient, is about to embark on her final year at Brown University, and wanted to share her experience with a summer internship while in college. Anya, originally from Uzbekistan in Central Asia, traveled from Rhode Island to San Francisco for her summer internship in business strategy consulting and believes that summer internships can offer great "real world" experience before leaving your ivory tower. You can read about Anya's steps for finding a summer internship in our April 2007 edition of the Monthly Update.

My sharp heels carry me to the train; it is still so early--I wake up before the sun does. With a cup of green tea in my hand (I am not a coffee person), I take the best seat on Caltrain (the commuter rail that takes you from San Jose to San Francisco). You'd be surprised, but there is an "unofficial" ranking of the seats, those ones closer to the doors are the best, and usually taken. It is always first-come, first-serve, which is why everyone is rushing to get on the train first. The air is filled with glancing looks and eye contact at each other, you can almost hear everyone think "So who will get the best seats this time?" It is always the same people commuting to San Francisco every morning. You all become friends. And yes, maybe you haven't even exchanged a word in the last 10 weeks or ever, but you all share that "joy" of commuting every morning and then in the evening, back and forth, five times a week. Except that it is not really joy, but a very tiresome activity.

I was never a morning person, until my summer internship. In college, I have been able to select classes that meet after 10 a.m. In college, everything seems so hard and complex. I felt that way until the minute I faced the real-real world. And yes, midterms and papers, and social activities, and other campus involvements take over your life. However, now it is a different story. Worrying about getting to work, performing at your best 9-5 (without coffee, let me reiterate that), getting back home, cooking dinner, cooking lunch for the next day, doing food shopping, and cooking again, cleaning, budgeting. It is a whole new level of responsibility.

During the academic year, you think about what you want to do in the evening, after classes and other responsibilities. Whether you are a big social butterfly or not, it was always an option. This summer, I didn't have such an option. By the time I got back home from work and cooked, had dinner, spent time with my boyfriend, it was time to get ready for another day. The goal of my writing to you? Well, yes, I admit, I need to get it off my chest and let it out to this big web universe. But more importantly, I wanted to share with you that "hit of reality" that I've been affected by. Enjoy college! As hard as it gets sometimes, these really are the best years of your life (or some of the best), when (as much as you feel that everything is just too overwhelming), it is still nothing compared to the real world.

However, on a good note, it is not that bad. After a month, I started to get in the habit. I really enjoyed the work I did in business strategy consulting, but more importantly, I enjoyed the people that surrounded me at work. I could not wish for a better team to work with! And as difficult as things could get at times, everything is a great learning experience. One of my bosses always emphasized that "no one is perfect, and there is always room for improvement," which just pushed me even further. So in a nutshell, my summer was great! All that hard work in finding an internship finally paid off! I feel much more prepared for the "real world," as they say, and I have one last year to enjoy college and appreciate every minute of it.

Until then, have a great year, everyone!
Anya Rasulova
Brown University, Class of 2008