Sociology-Criminology Senior Sees More Career Options after Internship

By Avant Griffith ’17

I am a Sociology-Criminology major, graduating this spring. This semester I am an intern at the Ohio Public Defender‘s office in Athens, Ohio.

There are a lot of positive benefits of participating in an internship during your undergraduate studies.

Far Better Than Expected!

I decided to do an internship with the Public Defender’s office because I wanted real-life experiences in a field related to my major and to make career connections.

It is an added bonus that I am receiving college credit for essentially building a stronger resume.

Honestly, before I started this internship, I had no clue what to expect from it.

I have held other internships in the past, and so I figured I would be doing office work, learning about the inner workings of the court system, and occasionally shadowing the attorneys and other office staff.

Although I am only halfway through this internship, the experiences I have had here have far surpassed my expectations.

I have witnessed court proceedings, learned new ways to organize and log files, sat in on client/attorney meetings, helped facilitate a community service event, aided with research for attorneys and shadowed attorneys and a social worker.

The Best Part—People and Stories

I would have never thought that I would get the chance to work with such amazing people while also expanding my own views about what I want to do with my sociology-criminology degree.

The thing I love the most about this internship is that every day is something new to do, so things are never boring.

Throughout this internship, I have seen and experienced many surprising things, but if I had to choose one thing that really stands out, it would be listening to the client stories—because everybody has stories!

It is so interesting to see how their stories play a role in their involvement with the criminal justice system.

What’s Next?

This internship has made a huge impact with what I want to do once I graduate.

Coming in to it I was sure I wanted to go into law enforcement.

At this point I have realized there are more paths that I could take that would help me reach the career goals that I have set for myself.

I recommend an internship to everybody because in today’s society the more experience we have, the more qualified we will be for whatever career we choose.