things have been going really well at the internship. I know I say this a lot, but I really do love going in to work on the activities that they have for me. My newest project is to begin doing research so that I can help in writing the "problem statement" of a potential proposal. I am very interested in this and also excited for the opportunity. I had a chance in my Business/Professional Writing course to do a "mock" proposal report, so I am familiar with the process to an extent. Having that experience will most definitely help me in my work on this. I have a grasp on what it is that they're looking for and what is expected for this particular aspect of the project. It is also fun to be working on creating something rather than just proofing. I love proofing and editing, but it is a welcomed change of pace to start actually writing something too. The only issue I have run into so far is that I'm having a little bit of difficulty finding specific statistics on the topic. There are stats on MANY similar topics, but I haven't run into any on the target topic yet. Although I have run into a bit of a roadblock in that respect, I have no doubts that I will be able to find resources that will have the information that I need. It also helps that my supervisor has offered his support numerous times if I should need it. Since this is a field (in general) that I am not yet familiar with, it is very reassuring to know that the people I am working with are willing to offer assistance. I will be sure to update about the project! (Especially since I am so excited to be working on it).

2/17 Update

I feel kind of silly as far as my blog is concerned this time. I was sick on Friday (and had a conference for school, fun day!) and the office was closed Monday due to President's Day. But anyways, my most recent project has been a computer program. The other developers and I have been working on proofing and editing this program for its new release. It had been distributed a few years back, but some improvements needed to be made in editing and content (since technology has made so many advancements). We spent a good amount of time on that, and I got to meet the newest member of the team. She works at a research department and has transferred over to this section. Although she will surely be missed at her other position, I am hoping that I can learn some helpful tips from her. I imagine that learning some researching tips would be helpful at the very least!

Update 2/10

The internship is continuing to go very well. I am learning a lot of different terminology and procedural aspects as I work. My updates for the most recent project were very well received and I will soon be getting the updated version to add to my portforlio. (Yay!) It is so rewarding to be praised and told that I am producing valuable work. I had no idea that I would feel so welcome so quickly. My supervisor is also very good at giving advice and constructive criticism. I never feel as though I made a huge mistake or that I made a stupid mistake because he always approaches the subject in such a positive light. I understand that this won't always be the case, especially in the "real world," but it is immensely helpful in my internship, that's for sure!

Update about internship

So far my internship is going incredibly well. All of the people that I work with are welcoming, friendly, and very helpful. At the start of my internship term, I began editing curriculum that was going to be updated from the last version. The only part about this that I found to be somewhat difficult was keeping myself from reading too much into the text. Although this is an important aspect in editing and proofing, I am unfamiliar with the terminology and information. Because of this, I needed to focus solely on grammatical and punctuation errors. Once I got into the swing of things it went well. At the end of my first day on this project, I successfully edited multiple pages of material. I finished the rest of the large manual the next time that I came into the office.

Currently, I am working on editing a second manual. This is quite similar to my prior task. I really love the work that they're having me do. Inbetween these two projects, I worked with another employee in this section on updating two power point presentations. The presentations were for the purposes of teaching other govt. officials an appropriate way to teach other adults. The first presentation we redid had a lot of puppy pictures throughout it, which is quite unacceptable for the audience in this case. My supervisor told me that he wanted the slides to be proefssional and concise. He felt that a room full of officers and officials would not be particularly impressed by a presentation full of puppy pictures. In addition to this, these presentations were going to be taught out of state. Because of the tone and purpose of these lessons, he thought that dogs should definitely remain out of the presentation.

So far I love what I am doing and I love the people that I am working with. They are all so helpful and I have never had a day where I didn't learn something!

What are your expectations for your internship and why?

I am expecting to gain valuable work experience in editing and proofreading that will help me in my upcoming career life. So far, I have benefited from the job search and interview processes. Both of these steps, although for an unpaid internship rather than a paying job, will be excellent practice for those same steps in a career search.

In addition to these learning experiences, I also hope to fine-tune my editing skills. Although some of these come naturally to me, I look forward to applying them in a business setting. I also hope to be able to work on proposal writing skills in a more hands-on and realistic manner.

Lastly, I am glad that I found an internship in a field of great interest to me. Working in an area that peaks my interests will help me "learn the ropes" and familiarize myself with the field as a whole.