Hello friends! I am Alyssa Clune, and I am a rising senior at Tulane studying Political Economy and Philosophy. This summer, I have the amazing opportunity to intern with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) at their headquarters in Paris, France. The OECD is an intergovernmental economic organization whose mission is to promote policies improving economic and social well-being worldwide, providing a forum for countries aiming to stimulate democracy, economic progress, and world trade. I came upon this internship by emailing the Public Engagement Manager about possible openings, and after a couple emails back and forth, she offered me an interview!
At the OECD, I will be interning with the Public Affairs and Communications Directorate, under the Public Affairs and Media department. There, I will be responsible for supporting OECD conference and campaign execution, including their Global Parliamentary Network Meeting “On the Road” in Poland and “I Am The Future of Work” campaign. I will also be coordinating outreach materials for the public and NGOs and drafting materials and media for public affairs events based on OECD research.
I am incredibly excited by this opportunity because working with political communications is my dream job, and being brought onboard the public affairs team for one of the leading economic organizations in the world to do just that is going to be both rewarding and challenging. Working at the intersection of economics, international relations, and communications will give me valuable experience in all 3 of those areas. I know that I will learn so much about how to facilitate communication between certain audiences and create accessible ways for everyday citizens to understand the economic impact of OECD’s work.
My 5 learning objectives for my internship at OECD are:
- Developing an understanding of political communications from an international perspective, and learning strategies to enhance the reach of my advocacy efforts
- Understanding how to use my emotional intelligence to communicate maturely and effectively as a female professional representing an international organization in a male-dominated field
- Gaining a deeper understanding of international economic and political issues, and how they reduce/increase the quality of life for Europeans at large
- Comparing the workplace atmosphere for women’s advancement and professionalism in policy abroad to the workplace in Washington, DC (where I interned last semester), and learning how to navigate these spaces where there is little female leadership or guidance
- Growing as an independent working abroad for the first time, including the challenges of being a foreign intern, having a non-native French-speaking proficiency, and advocating for myself in the workplace to take on new responsibilities and projects
To get ready for this amazing summer, I have been making a lot of preparations and logistics. First of all, I have to work out my visa, which includes a lot of paperwork to verify my housing, French bank account, proof of internship, proof of funding, etcetera. This has been taking up a lot of my time, but I know it will all be worth it! I’ve also been brushing up on my French skills, because even though the OECD is an English-speaking organization, I want to make sure I get the most out of my time in Paris and with French-speakers.
On the internship side, I have been keeping up with current events in Europe and economics-related news, and also brushing up on the PR fundamentals that I have learned in my classes, internships, and extracurriculars throughout college. I have also been mentally preparing for the full-time job experience, which I partially saw last semester with my 3-day a week internship with the House of Representatives, but now I will be a fully independent intern on my own in the city, so I am adjusting my expectations for the responsibilities that will entail.
Newcomb College Institute’s mission is to empower women through the cultivation of lifelong leadership, and preserve Sophie Newcomb’s memory by providing a woman-centric experience at a co-ed institution. My goals for this internship align perfectly with this mission, because I, too, want to grow my identity as a woman and as an advocate, even while at a co-ed organization operating in a sphere that has in the past been dominated by men. In fact, my female-centric lens will enhance my experience at the OECD, because it will allow me to pick up on what communication tactics work best in this policy sphere, and also allow me to cross-compare with the culture I was exposed to in Washington, DC last semester.
Through every step of my internship, I can keenly identify what practices OECD and European workplaces in general use to enhance or stifle women’s issues and leadership, as compared with my own country’s capitol. I can then use these differences to take the best of European workplaces while also understanding the work that still needs to be done worldwide to enhance women’s participation in politics and economics because leadership in these organizations inform the issues that take precedent.
I can’t wait to settle into my summer life in Paris and at the OECD, and although it has been a lot of work to prepare for it, I know it will be worth it! I am a little nervous about being on my own in this foreign city but mostly excited to see what this summer will bring!