Earlier this year, Russian major Sydnee Wilke received a Professionalization Grant from the Slavic Department. In her own words, Sydnee will speak about her experiences interning at the State Department over the summer.
"As a double major in International Studies and Russian, it has always been a dream of mine to one day work for the State Department. This past summer I had the opportunity to go to Washington, D.C. and intern with them. For 8 weeks, I worked with the Office of the Historian researching and helping to compile their book series, Foreign Relations of the United States. I developed analytical writing skills and learned all about book publishing, editing, and declassification of government documents. As well, I learned a lot about the function and history of the State Department and had the opportunity to meet with Foreign Service Officers and Civil Servants throughout the department. I even had the chance to hear both Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Current Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speak.
Since my internship, I have been working on improving my Russian skills and cultural knowledge in order to one day potentially work for the State Department. I want to become a diplomat and be posted overseas in a Russian speaking country. Learning Russian to a level of fluency would be very useful in my career, especially as I wish to do public diplomacy and work with people. After my time in DC this summer, I am even more encouraged to work and study hard in order to achieve my goals and live my dream of becoming a diplomat."
