JESSICA DaSILVA in D.C.

Today my program-mates and I got up early to make a trip through the rain to the Eisenhower White House Office Building for a White House briefing.

Because they announced it was off the record, I will exclude the names of the two speakers and any identifying information about their backgrounds. Instead, I really just want to focus on the information they gave us that I found important in starting a career in Washington, DC. The first speaker had only been working in the White House for about two weeks. He focussed his talk on being a hard worker.

Getting involved in Washington politics young is key. Any internship is a viable way to breaking into the incestuous nature of DC. And as an intern, he said the general advice to follow is to get to work early and learn to photocopy well.

The advice was half told in jest, but he said hard, efficient work is essentially the name of the game. He said he wasn’t the smartest guy, but knows he got to his job in the White House because people knew he did his job accurately and did it well.

During the Q&A I asked about the competition for the White House internships, and he said 1,400 students apply for 200 positions throughout different departments. At first I was shocked, but then I did a little math and realized that’s only about seven people competing for each slot.

Not bad, not bad at all… I think I’m going to apply for a position in one of the four press departments for January 2009 after I graduate.

The second speaker was actually someone who worked IN one of the press departments, and boy, did he make it sound like fun.

He said the atmosphere in the White House takes on that of the president’s personality and habits, so while that means everyone starts work at like 6 a.m., the offices are pretty laid back and lighthearted.

From what I gathered, the press offices mainly have to consume as much news about the presidency as possible and prepare responses to the press corps’ questions (before they ask them). They also send out loads of press releases, help plan events and make arrangements with reporters to stalk the president everywhere he goes.

While it sounded like loads of fun, he added that the responsibility he feels is pretty crazy. There is pressure to not only get information out quickly, but accurately. Whatever comes out of your mouth is representative of the leader of our nation. Getting it wrong could shift public opinion, affect the vote of Congress, or piss off another world leader. That’s a lot to handle.

Still, I was totally in love with what I heard. I think an internship in the one of the press offices would be an amazing place to start my career in Washington. Not only would I gain some experience, but possibly bring me closer to my dream of being a White House correspondent through contact with the media.

Regardless of whether I get the internship or not, I’m going to apply. As my dad always says, “Every shot not taken is a goal not scored.”

Some pictures from today: