In a world where politics often is at the forefront of national conversation, it’s not surprising that many University of Virginia students are seeking career opportunities in this realm.
This summer, 50 students have been selected to participate in UVA’s 22nd Century Scholars program, designed to give students public-sector, event-planning, political and historical research, and video documentary work experience. Participants also receive personalized career counseling through the UVA Career Center. In the program’s final two weeks, the scholars will serve as “host peers” for a U.S. Department of State-sponsored delegation of students from Iraq.
The 22nd Century Scholar program, launched last year, is made possible thanks to UVA’s Center for Politics, in partnership with the Miller Center of Public Affairs, the Weldon Cooper Center’s Sorensen Institute, the Democracy Initiative, and the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.
We caught up with five students from the program, who talked about their experiences.
Molly Hayes: Documentary Making
Hayes, from Alexandria, is a rising third-year student in the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and is minoring in social entrepreneurship. She’s been participating in politically driven activities from a young age.
“One of my main things in high school was Young Democrats, and I definitely wanted to continue that work in college,” she said. “This past November, I worked with Hoos for Webb, which was campaigning for Dr. Cameron Webb for Congress.”
Prior to being a 22nd Century Scholar, one of Hayes’ courses connected her with the Center for Politics.
“In the spring, I took a workshop in contemporary American politics. The class was with [Ken] Stroupe [associate director and chief of staff at the Center for Politics], and part of the class was an internship with the Center for Politics,” Hayes said.
During the course, which is co-taught by Stroupe and Center for Politics Director Larry J. Sabato, Hayes, along with other students, decided to create a documentary, “Common Grounds?,” examining differing student perspectives on social, policy and governmental issues.
“I was working in the programming department, which is the same department I’m working in now, and the main thing I did during that internship was create a documentary with four other interns,” she said. “The documentary will be out in the fall. It’s going to be around 30 minutes long.
“We interviewed UVA students from across the political spectrum and then tried to get them to have a conversation with each other to share ideas,” she said.
(Watch the trailer.)
This summer, Hayes will continue her work on “Common Grounds?” while also exploring new projects.
“I will continue to work on the documentary, specifically finalizing the script and the order in which we tell the story. I will also do some marketing stuff to get the film ready for release,” Hayes said. “I’ll also be doing some research for other upcoming documentaries.”
The internship brought students closer together and created deep personal connections, she said.
“The five of us who were working on the documentary, some of whom continued to be 22nd Century Scholars, got really close because we were working 15 hours a week and sometimes spent all day filming on the weekends,” she said. “It was really interesting because within our group, we had vastly different political ideologies, but that ultimately helped us.”
Jaden Evans: Enrichment Opportunities
Evans, a rising third-year student, said he decided to apply to the 22nd Century Scholars program because of the supportive culture and resources offered.
“A big part of it that was exciting for me was the enrichment opportunities the program offers. For example, all students in the program will receive a mentor,” he said. “They also host talks with the Career Center. The chance to interface directly with the staff at the Career Center, who have an established connection with public service and government arenas, has been really valuable because they’ve been talking through a lot of career paths unknown to many of us.”
Beyond employment services and counseling, the program also focuses on additional learning opportunities for its students.
“Each week they bring in visiting professors and scholars to meet with us, so there’s been some enrichment opportunities beyond – like the actual research and the actual projects students are working on. They’re curating a pretty unique experience,” he said.
These services are particularly important to Evans, a Joseph Chappell Hutcheson Jefferson Scholar, who hopes to pursue a career in foreign service. In preparation, he has decided to major in media studies and foreign affairs, which he uses in his internship.
