This summer a dozen OU students will unplug from academia and begin internships with the U.S. State Department.

Many of them will work with high-level officials, like Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and head overseas to a variety of locales.

Thousands of students apply for the prestigious internships that are offered throughout the year at various U.S. embassies and consulates around the world.

More than 30 OU students applied for summer positions, but only 12 were selected.

Still, Justin Franklin, Foreign Affairs Campus Coordinator for the U.S. State Department, said this number puts OU in elite company.

"This number ranks OU alongside many Ivy League schools in terms of representation. In the past, OU only averaged about five or six a year," he said.

Franklin, also a political science senior, said he encourages more students to apply because there are opportunities year-round.

Power And Prestige

Interns are given a variety of assignments that may be considerably more challenging, interesting and rewarding than they could typically find elsewhere, Franklin said.

"It's an opportunity for you to get an inside look at the different types of positions and responsibilities available in foreign affairs," he said.

Intern duties include writing reports on human rights issues, assisting with trade negotiations, helping Americans in distress abroad, economic or environmental research and even working with genetically modified organisms. These are just a few of the fields in which students may work.

Last summer, Franklin worked in Washington, D.C., for the Dignitary Protection Division, providing logistical support for foreign dignitaries visiting the country.

"These positions are not your typical internships. I was given real duties and real responsibility -- I was just one of the team," he said.

Government Internshipso Twelve OU students were selected for State Department internships.o If interested, contact Justin Franklin at justin.r.franklin@ou.edu or Vladimir Sambaiew at 325-1428.

Because of the position last summer, Franklin said he was able to become the Foreign Affairs Campus Coordinator at OU and was selected to join and travel with Rice's Details Office working in diplomacy and security.

Franklin added that being selected by the U.S. government to work -- whether it's in Africa, Europe, the Caribbean or Washington, D.C. -- will impress potential employers.

"It's a powerful statement of character for the government to approve you for top-secret or secret clearance," he said. "These internships are a great preparation for any future career, for any job."

Mary Allen, international area studies and French senior, will head to the small west African country Benin to serve as a liaison between the local government and the American embassy. She said she will be reporting on the recently elected president and his administration.

"I will take notes at press conferences and other events and report back to the embassy," she said. "I am thrilled -- I can't wait."

Use OU To Your Advantage

Franklin said the State Department is beginning to recruit more heavily in different parts of the country. More specifically, they are getting away from the "Ivy league cookie-cutter" mold.

"Quite frankly, the State Department has begun looking outside of the box due to today's ever-changing globalized world," he said.

But OU students also have another distinct advantage: Vladimir Sambaiew, Diplomat in Residence. One of 17 nationwide, DIRs are placed at colleges and universities to help recruit America's best and brightest. Franklin added that another valuable asset is Edward Perkins, geopolitics chairman and executive director of International Programs Center.

Perkins served as an ambassador to the United Nations and different countries in the 1980s and is noted as the first African-American ambassador to South Africa.

Planning Ahead

The State Department is looking for students from a broad range of majors, such as business, social work, journalism, public administration, economics, engineering and other degrees commonly associated with international affairs. In addition, strong applicants will have good grades and a variety of extracurricular activities.

The State Department Web site has a questionnaire to match interests with goals, profiles of past intern experiences and a timetable that outlines the nearly year-long application process.

Breanna Cameron, political science senior, said she will be working at the American embassy in London this summer. She will work with the public but isn't sure of the details yet. Cameron said she will work near 15 other interns from across the country.

"I didn't know any of them before I applied, but I already have arrangements to live with five other girls," Cameron said.

While most internships are unpaid, the student may earn college credit if his or her department agrees. All internships are 40 hours a week.

How To Get Started

Franklin said there likely won't be any more meetings this semester but encourages students to contact him if they have any questions.

July 1 is the application deadline for next spring and students can prepare by logging on to the State Department Web site and review the "application checklist" for all the relevant materials they will need to submit.
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