“Stepping into my internship with the Open University, I wasn’t fully aware of much of a difference it would make within my time here and my life going forward. From day one, I was fully engaged in conversations surrounding how women suffer in the workplace more than we know, and how they also face a lot of hardships that could be easily preventable, and have said that they were given better opportunities. When diving into the collaboration aspect of my internship with my mentor, I wanted to pinpoint some of the things we talked about in the sessions that left a lasting impact on me.
I had the pleasure of working with Dr. Duddin, who shared some powerful narratives from women navigating a dual life within the police force and motherhood. It helped open up discussion on where I could research some things to help give her some articles to look over, so that she can help compare and contrast different ways to provide some good reports to those around her. I found coming up with different sources and information from the fire department was the most interesting for me, considering that our focus was the police force.
What has stood out the most to me is the constant support and the utmost amount of respect for time and availability. It felt like one big family, and it felt great knowing that whenever I would be struggling, I knew I could ask questions and get a response back within a reasonable time. It has also helped me change my focus and shift my energy into trying to be more involved in doing my research surrounding women’s studies. Even though I am a finance major, I loved every bit of choosing something outside of my field and learning so many important new things I can take with me into the corporate world.
As this internship wraps up, I find myself more and more immersed in finding out gender in its complexities. It’s been incredibly rewarding to learn from researchers who combine policy with empathy, and it has left me inspired to explore these different theories and topics in my academic path. I hope to not only keep in contact with the different professors that I met, but I also intend to continue looking into doing more projects that unify research and lived experience, and to keep asking questions that lead to meaningful change.”
