What Her Campus UChicago Did This Summer

What Her Campus UChicago Did This Summer
 
Annie began her summer as a bitter, bitter child.
Did she love that it was sunny outside?
No.
Did it matter that she was always at the beach?
She couldn’t care less.
Didn’t she enjoy the “sit down relax and find yourself” routine?
For about, uh, three days.
Her best friends were in Beijing and Florida with jobs and Annie was stuck bumming
around in cheesy T-shirts and short shorts while blaring Chemical Brothers. In short, she
was a very, very displeased, displeased because her grad school journalism ambitions had frozen
during the summer since internships were out of her reach.
Until Voice of America emailed her in July.
Then life just got so much better.
Within a week Annie stuffed everything into a red suitcase and took off for DC from
Canada to intern at Voice of America. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Voice of
America (which is pretty much 95% of you), it’s an international broadcasting organization that
is famous abroad, but banned from airing in the U.S. But for Annie, it was a playground of
interviews, radio/TV stations, new friends, new knowledge, and just all around journalism fun.
By the end time she left DC early September, Annie had learned all about the inner
workings of an international news organization, contributed heavily to the Public Relations
office’s website, and slept through (not kidding) an earthquake and a hurricane. Not to mention
that she got a backup internship for next year, which goes to show how far a little hard work can
take you.
You know what that means?
No more bumming around the house in short shorts.
 
 
When Ariana first started trying to make summer plans, she was shooting for one of a “resume-boosting” job. She applied to labs, searched for internships, the whole kit and caboodle. In the end, there was a job waiting for her but she didn’t know if she would receive funding, an absolute must. She ended up taking biochemistry and worked part-time as a nanny for an eleven-year-old boy. Aside from a few pre-teen attitude spats from his friends, the position went pretty well and made for a great balance after a morning of science. With two weeks left in the course, and still no word on funding from the lab job, she had to make a decision between the lab and being a full-time nanny for the rest of the summer.  
 
In other news, Arianna, in a spur of the moment decision, decided to take MCAT class offered at UIC. Though funding finally came through for the lab job, as she had already committed to studying for and taking the MCAT, she had to turn it down. She also spent time hanging out with friends, modeling for a fantastic vintage store in the north suburbs of the city (that’s the thumbnail pic!), and finally made it to a few of the concerts that were part of Millennium Park’s “Concerts in the Park” series. Her sister also visited for a few days to celebrate a birthday and Ariana celebrated her 21^st in the city. She also made the necessary preparations for going abroad: passport, adapters, travel guides, and more.  At the end of summer, Ariana packed her bags and was ready to head home for a week before departing for France for a quarter. Stay tuned to hear all about it!
 
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Over the course of the summer, Bianca volunteered on campus for a national non-profit organization called Health Leads. Health Leads, formerly known as Project Health, originally began in Massachusetts and then spread to colleges and universities all throughout the country. The main idea behind Health Leads is to step in and basically act as the middleman between patients and physicians. Physicians mostly treat the mental and physical aspects of their patients, and with so many other elements affecting a patient’s health such as living conditions and job security, it is hard for practitioners to step in and fix all factors that may be taking a toll on their patients’ overall health. Volunteers of Health Leads fill the gap and assist patients with any needs not met.
 
Looking back at her experience with Health Leads this summer, Bianca recognizes that it was a truly valuable and fulfilling experience. It began with a two-day training session towards the end of June, in which all of the volunteers came together to learn about the wonderful resources in Chicago for those facing unemployment, homelessness, starvation, substance abuse, etc. Although, it was overwhelming at first to learn about all of these valuable resources, after some practice and a few sessions interacting with new clients, it became second nature to know exactly which resource would be helpful for a particular client. However, there were a few tougher cases to face, such as a client of hers who had just been diagnosed with cancer and was having trouble paying her rent and utilities. While cases like these were hard to hear, it made her feel good knowing that she could actually contribute and make a difference in her client’s life.
 
After the two-day training session, it was time to go out and work. Bianca was stationed at Friends and Family Health Center (FFHC), an on campus government funded health clinic. She really enjoyed the environment at FFHC. The clients that walked up to the family help desk asking for assistance were always willing to explain their situations and provide what is otherwise private information so that we could record the information to find resources that better suit them. An additional role of a Health Lead’s volunteer was to follow-up. Sometimes it was easy to reach a client and other times it was discouraging when she’d attempted several times to reach a client and were receiving no response. However, in the end it was worth it to know that she had made a difference in at least one of her client’s life, even if it is just talking on the phone with them the same time every week.
 
Overall, Bianca really enjoyed her summer with Health Leads, and hopes to continue volunteering with them throughout the rest of her 4^th year at UChicago. If you’re interested look out for flyers for Health Leads info sessions that will be happening next week!
 

Erica spent her summer interning at The Bluhm Legal Clinic, Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern Law which provides legal aid to wrongfully convicted persons while trying to exonerate them. The Center also helps exonerees adjust back into civilian life and advocates for criminal justice reform. She was initially a little concerned about taking an unpaid internship, wondering how she was going to pay rent and if she would be able to eat something other than Ramen all summer. But the experience was definitely worth being broke for. She gained invaluable experience and was able to advocate for a cause she really cares about. While there, she was able to assist on actual cases, speak with exonerees, and research reoccurring criminal justice and social issues that lead to wrongful convictions.
 
Her internship definitely strengthened her interest in going to law school and working in the non-profit or public interest sector.  Working unpaid also allowed her to discover the fun, free things to do in Chicago, like the zoo and beach!  She realized that taking an unpaid internship is doable and worth it if it’s a cause or field one is really interested in.  
 
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Jessica spent the majority of her summer working as a camp counselor at a recreation park in Los Angeles, returning for her 6^th straight summer (that’s dedication). Her favorite moments from summer camp include leading her assigned group to a performance of “Just the Way You Are” at the camp talent show, seeing adorable little faces everyday, and the fact that she did not once have to deal with soiled pants or any other situations involving bathroom accidents. When not at camp, Jessica spent time with friends and frequented her favorite food spots.
 
A particularly special event of the summer involved her flying back to Chicago for three amazing(ly muggy) days at Lollapalooza, At Lolla, Jessica reveled in the music of amazing artists, ate a lobster corn dog (oh my goodness), and was smothered by the hyper-aggressive crowds, meanwhile, sweating at an unnatural rate.
 
Michelle’ssummer was an exhausting yet enlightening experience as she tackled two internships in Chicago—and at one point, an additional part-time job. For the first time, she was completely on her own, working 8 and 12-hour workdays, paying rent for an apartment she shared with three other friends, buying groceries, commuting downtown, etc. She had never felt so grown up, to say the least.
 
Michelle’s first internship was at a non-profit organization combating urban sprawl, promoting healthy, accessible, green communities. As the Communications Intern, she was charged with a variety of tasks, from updating databases and organizing membership lists, to attending press events and publishing articles. More than an opportunity to explore the field of communications, it was an interesting look at the non-profit sector and how it functions as a small corporation.
 
She also worked a few nights as a Communications Intern at a theatre in the artsy neighborhood of Wicker Park, Chicago. She found this job to be much more hands-on and personal, helping craft mission statements, marketing campaigns, contracts, and more. Because she was working closely with the very people who had started the theatre, she also learned about the difficulties of starting one’s own company—such as the finances, legalities, and tremendous effort it requires.
 
Both her internship experiences were memorable in different ways. From the internship at the non-profit organization, Michelle learned about professionalism, new urbanism, how a small non-profit functions, and a great deal about the city of Chicago. From her internship at the theatre, she learned about interpersonal relationships, how to write contracts and proposals, and the world of the arts. Though it was challenging to balance the two, she’s grateful for them, for they exposed her to the diversity of paths that she can take.