An adviser from the Washington Center spoke at Grand Valley State University’s Allendale Campus on Tuesday, Feb. 17 to spread the word of upcoming opportunities during the 2015 summer and fall semesters.

With the opportunity presented, students can earn up to 12 credits as they develop professional skills through seminars and pursue internships with a wide range of organizations during their stay in Washington, D.C.

“You get a jump on professional development while you’re still working on your degree,” said Washington Center adviser Jaclyn Sheridan.

Students enrolled in the program will participate in a leadership forum and academic courses, in addition to internships.

“You can customize it any way you want,” Sheridan said. “Everybody’s experience is totally different.”

The program is best suited for political science and international affairs majors, but all majors can benefit from the experience, Sheridan said.

The Washington Center’s internship matching process finds substantive internships that are tailored to suit students’ needs in a variety of fields in the government, business and nonprofit worlds.

“No matter what you’re interested in, we can find an internship to match,” Sheridan said.

Students will also have the opportunity to explore the capital and live in the city, she said – giving hands on experiences to the students who choose to take part in this educational opportunity.

“The city itself can be such a teacher,” she said. “It’s also a really wonderful cultural center.”

The Washington Center provides apartment-style housing for students, which gives them an opportunity to build connections with other students from around the world, Sheridan said.

“It’s one of the best parts of the whole experience,” she said.

Mark Richards, GVSU Political Science department chair, said GVSU students have had successful experiences through The Washington Center.

“From our students’ perspective, all of the students have been really happy with the time they’ve put in,” he said.

Students who apply must be of sophomore standing or higher, 18 years or older and have a minimum 2.75 GPA. Applications must be approved by campus liaison Donald Zinman of the Political Science department.

The deadline for the summer application is March 18.

There are many scholarship opportunities available to help defray the costs of the program, including a new GVSU scholarship that will be announced this winter.

For more information on The Washington Center and other opportunities it has to offer, visit its site at
www.twc.edu.

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