Samaa Ahmed ’13 currently lives and works in Washington, DC. At Wellesley, she majored in Psychology and minored in Sociology. She was an Albright Fellow, and was actively involved in various cultural organizations (including Slater, WCD, WASA, WASAC, and WAWA) and was a DJ at WZLY.
In June 2013, I started out my new life as an alum — jobless and a bit overwhelmed. I had not even thought about what I was going to do the week after graduation. I had no specific plans for the near future, except for a vague idea that I wanted to go to law school in a few years’ time. I scrambled to sublet an apartment in Boston for the summer (thank you Craigslist!) and planned to spend the next several months sending out job applications and studying for the LSAT. However, I did neither of those things, because after a brief trip to Washington, DC, I was offered an internship.
I started the internship in July at the Global Women’s Leadership Initiative/Women in Public Service Project (WPSP) at the Woodrow Wilson Center. Interning with WPSP was a gentle transition into the “real world” because I was still surrounded by Wellesley women. While at Wellesley, I worked with WPSP’s Program Director, Rangita de Silva de Alwis, through the Wellesley Centers for Women. Also, the WPSP’s Program Assistant, Alexandria Icenhower, is an amazing Wellesley alum from the Class of 2012. My first project was to compile and edit a publication for print entitled “Can International Human Rights Norms Secure Women’s Rights in the MENA Region?” which examined the importance and effectiveness of human rights legislation on the lives of women in the Middle East.
Through working on this publication, it became apparent to me that my passion for social justice, gender, and the Middle East were aspects of my identity and interests that I wanted to explore more in my work. I took on a second internship at the Wilson Center, this time with the Middle East Program, which complemented my work at the Women’s program. I was interested examining how gender was being integrated into national discourse in the MENA countries and following the socio-cultural and political impact of a renewed women’s movement in the region. I started compiling weekly Gender Briefs and posted them on my blog and on my twitter page. As of last week, my News Briefs have been published on the Wilson Center website.
Continuing with the gender and social justice theme, I applied for an internship at KARAMAH, an NGO that focuses on education and advocacy for Muslim women’s rights worldwide. I have been working with them since January, and have really been enjoying it so far!
In addition to my internships, I was recently offered a part-time legal assistant position with a Wall Street law firm. This position gives me an opportunity to see policy put into practice. I am looking forward to getting some real experience in the legal field, and hopefully this will be a stepping stone to my future law school plans.
So all in all, it has been a very busy and eventful six months! I moved to a new city, lived in three very different neighborhoods in Washington, DC (Foggy Bottom, Columbia Heights, and Capitol Hill), had four different jobs, and made wonderful new friends.
Although I don’t think that my brief experience outside the bubble, so far, qualifies me to bestow words of wisdom upon current upperclasswomen/students, I can share some advice that has served me well.
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Think of post-Wellesley life as a new adventure! You are out in the wild (aka the non-Wellesley world) for the first time in years. How exciting! This is the time for you to try new things, figure out who you are, and who you want to be.
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Put yourself out there, professionally and personally. If you hear about an interesting opportunity for a job, travel, or project – go for it! That’s how I got my internship at KARAMAH. I saw that they had a Legal Internship position available, so I emailed them to see if I qualified to apply (I did not – I am not in law school), but they then invited me to interview for a regular internship position.
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Take advantage of as many opportunities as you can! I mean, look at me – I have three jobs at the moment. Each internship and job allows me to explore a different field and develop new skills. But…
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Find time for yourself. Don’t overdo it! I make sure not to work myself too hard. I have discussed my work commitments with all of my supervisors and they have all been very understanding and flexible with my schedule. Ask for what you need.
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Find a mentor! I have been very lucky to have had strong, inspirational, female mentors throughout my time at Wellesley and beyond. I cannot emphasize enough how important they have been for me. If you find someone who does your dream job, is super interesting, or just awesome in whatever way – ask them to be your mentor. It is that easy. Okay, yes, it might be a bit awkward, but I am sure they will be flattered and I am 90% sure they will say yes! (Wouldn’t you?)
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Most importantly: Don’t panic! Seriously. Everything is going to be okay. You are not the only one feeling lost and confused. Reach out to your Wellesley siblings, family, friends, professors, etc. You have a strong network of people who care about you. You are not in this struggle alone! It’s okay not to have things figured out right now, just do your best.