By Rose O’Neill, FCLC 2021
Click here for Rose’s Met’s internship experience and the COVID-19
When I first started thinking about college internships, I never thought that I’d participate in one entirely remotely during a worldwide pandemic. Last year, after we were all sent home and it became clear that my spring and summer plans would fall through, I applied to many positions, trying to complete at least one application a day. I hated being stuck indoors and wanted to at least feel like I was making some type of progress in my life.
Of course, most of the internships and jobs to which I submitted my résumé ended up postponing or canceling their hirings. I accepted that, just like the plans I had had before the lockdown, my applications would not work out the way that I hoped. I was surprised, therefore, when I received an email from the New York City Ballet membership department in December in response to an application I had filled out the previous March. I interviewed the next week and started the internship a month later.
Working remotely has been a very different experience from going to an office every day. Being at my parents’ house and then at my dorm, it’s taken a bit more intentional scheduling to make sure I’m prepared for meetings and assignments than if I were at the office. I’ve gotten to know my co-workers exclusively through emails, phone calls, and video meetings. I have now assisted with virtual events, a reality that I never considered pre-pandemic. I was also able to attend webinars and sit in on meetings for different departments I was interested in, which probably would have been logistically more difficult to do if I were not remote. Even though last year and this year could not happen the way that I wanted, I am grateful that I could
