Current Students

Amanda Parker

Major: Political Science
Hometown: Lowell, IN

I'll be interning in the U.S. Consulate General's office in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam for 10 weeks, working full-time. I'll mostly be helping facilitate visas for Vietnamese citizens wanting to come to the U.S. and helping American citizens in Vietnam. There are a few other interns in HCMC, although they'll be working in other sections than mine.

I first learned about U.S. Department of State internships and jobs when a recruiter came to Purdue last school year to talk to students.  I applied for an internship abroad last October and was notified in December that I was the primary candidate for HCMC. Many internships are available both domestically (in Washington, D.C. and New York City mostly) and in other countries. Housing is sometimes provides for internships abroad, which it is in my case, and I'll be living within walking distance of my post.

Hopefully I'll be able to travel around Vietnam and to other countries in Southeast Asia. I might even start learning Vietnamese when I arrive there, so that I might make my way around the city without too much trouble or a translator's help.