Have you ever wanted an internship with the White House? Apply to the Washington Center program and you just might get your wish.

The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars is a nonprofit organization that provides opportunities for college students to work and learn in Washington, D.C. through academic internships. The program selects students from more than 1,000 colleges and universities, and then assigns each student to an internship that lasts for one semester and is customized to fit the student’s particular interests.

The Washington Center program offers 12 hours of internship credit and three hours of academic credit. Students typically work during the day and go to a three-hour class one night a week. There are classes in almost every field of study, from politics to journalism to social welfare. Some universities require that students take classes to supplement their college majors; otherwise, the students may take any class that is available.

Vanessa Van Auken is a junior political science and religion major at TCU. She worked as a White House intern with the USA Freedom Corps during the fall semester of 2005. “The nice thing about the program is that they have a good variety of classes,” Van Auken said. “The class I took there really prepared me for the classes I am taking now at TCU.” Van Auken said the classes had a fairly easy workload, in order to accommodate the students’ busy work schedules.

Housing for the students is also provided by The Washington Center. The students pay for tuition and housing costs through their universities, and the universities distribute that money to The Washington Center. There is a program fee for each student that can be paid in the same manner.

Along with the internship and academic classes offered to the students, there is a weekly lectureship called the Washington Forum that all students are encouraged to attend. The forum is a series of lectures by national and international speakers, and sometimes includes question and answer sessions with U.S. Congressmen. Former U.S. Ambassador and Speaker of the House Tom Foley spoke at the forum in the fall.

Kim Franklin is the regional representative for The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars. “A semester at The Washington Center can be a transformative experience,” Franklin said. “Our programs, internship placements and courses are intended to meet [students’] interests and goals. They will have fun meeting students from all over the world as they live and immerse themselves in one of America’s greatest cities.”

For more information about the Washington Center program, visit http://www.twc.edu/.

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