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YES Prep Alumna has a Change in Perspective for her Immediate Future
September 20, 2011 by Tenesha Villanueva
YES Prep Southeast Class of 2008 graduate and current Harvard senior, Keara Cormier-Hill, shares how a summer internship set her on a course for a career in non-profits.
When I began college in the fall of 2008, I hoped to pursue a career in journalism or communications after graduation. However, by the end of my junior year, I realized I had different goals for my immediate future. After years of concentrating in Sociology, I started to become more and more interested in the impact of public policies and understanding inequality in America. I felt drawn to the non-profit world and though I was fired up and ready to drop my old dreams and take on the non-profit world, I had no idea how to do it! My past experiences had only prepared me for a career in communications, and my only exposure to non-profit organizations were through a few month-long volunteer activities.
After several months of searching and applying to multiple positions, I was blessed to find one that combined my past experiences with my new interest. In June, I became a Marketing and Communications Intern at the National Housing Conference(
My first day of work, I was immediately thrown into a whirlwind of activity to prepare for NHC’s biggest annual fundraiser, the 2011 Housing Person of the Year Gala. Programs had to be proofed, social media strategies had to be created, awards needed to be ordered, and we needed to check on the payment status of attendees while not losing sight of attracting new attendees. Even though the list of gala related tasks were enough to keep the team busy for days, there were still other events and projects that we had to work on while preparing for the gala, including a policy summit; to be held one day after the gala.
I doubted the NHC staff when they first told me, “You will never be without something to do”, but I quickly saw that it was true. I came into work on Monday, June 27, the week following our two big events, and at least three new projects sprang up. For the remaining weeks of the internship, I continued working on event tasks like posting event communications and budgets, along with membership tasks such as analysis and breakdown of the members and other things that dealt with newly published research and upcoming events.
Even though I had a busy summer, it was exactly what I had been looking for in a summer internship experience. Because there was so much going on, I was involved in a variety of non-profit areas. I enjoyed the many learning experiences that were presented. Most importantly, I was able to make connections with people who were passionate and educated, and they all offered me advice that I continuously rely on in my senior year and hopefully for many years to come.
For students who are trying to figure out what they want to do after college, I definitely encourage them to find an internship; whether it is in the summer, during the school year, locally or in a new city. When else can you take the time to learn, make mistakes, excel or fail, love it or hate it and not have to worry about major consequences like losing your job, healthcare package, or being stuck somewhere you wish you could escape every day? With an internship, no matter how it goes, you’re only there for a few months and hopefully those few months will bring you much closer to where you want to be when you get your degree!
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