For my Scholars Practicum, I did an internship with a local nonprofit organization called Vikara Village. The mission of Vikara Village is to “build more resilient citizens” through the means of specialized yoga practice, with classes including Body Love Yoga, Yoga for Grief, and more. I was a Volunteer Management Intern at Vikara Village for nearly five months and my primary responsibility was to oversee and record the organization's volunteer activity during this time. This required consistent communication with the volunteers through which I provided them with any necessary documentation, assigned tasks in accordance with each volunteer's skillset, responded to inquiries, and gave conducive feedback to facilitate each volunteer's experience with Vikara Village. In addition to the functions of my internship directly related to volunteer management, I was also responsible for helping the organization in the advancement of its current goals and undertakings. Through the duration of my time with Vikara Village, I worked on a Board Development Project in which I communicated with the organization's Board of Directors and used their feedback to identify any flaws in the Board's structure and operations. After a thorough evaluation of the Board, I created various resources, including a Nominations and Onboarding Path, Skills Matrix, Roles and Responsibilities Sheet, and multiple orientation PowerPoints to address the acknowledged shortcomings.
I found my practicum through the platform Careers4Terps. Through this service, University of Maryland students and alumni can search job postings uploaded by employers who are specifically looking to hire from the UMD community. These postings include both part-time and full-time work, including internship positions. After seeing the opening at Vikara Village, reading through the position description, and learning more about the organization's mission, I gained interest in the role and sent out my resume and a cover letter to apply for the internship. For future Media Scholars who are seeking out a practicum site, I would recommend keeping an open mind about what it might look like and what it might entail. Even though my internship had little to do with my desired field of work upon graduation, it was valuable in that it strengthened and diversified my skillset and experiences. It is beneficial to maintain a broad scope when searching for internship opportunities, and I would suggest that future Media Scholars consider organizational values and their personal interests, rather than merely the industry they plan to go into, when selecting a practicum. I also recommend that future Media Scholars write and send in cover letters when applying for internships for the practicum and in general. Cover letters allow applicants to stand out by giving them the chance to share a bit more about themselves and further convey why they would be a strong fit for the organization.
From my practicum, I learned a significant amount about the nonprofit world and gained a new appreciation for organizations, such as Vikara Village, that place community development at the forefront of their objectives and goals. Prior to this internship, I had little understanding about the functions and fund sources of nonprofit organizations, but working closely with the Founder and Executive Director of Vikara Village, Hannah Davis, gave me valuable insight about the power structures in a nonprofit setting, the role of the Board of Directors, the community impact, and even a bit about the financial handlings. Additionally, this internship experience taught me about effective volunteer management. I have been heavily involved in volunteer work since middle school, as I graduated high school with about 260 student service learning hours and still participate in community outreach activities with Terps for Change and with my professional fraternity. Given my abundance of volunteer experience, it was interesting to take on a fresh perspective and learn how to lead and manage volunteers, rather than act as one. During the internship, I was also referred to a webinar through which I was able to learn about volunteer orientation techniques and hear from other volunteer supervisors about their experiences.
Although I have grown in many ways from this internship, my most prominent area of growth has been in my confidence. As mentioned above, an aspect of my internship experience was working on a Board Development Project in which I produced a variety of materials and resources to supplement the organization's Board operations. I am particularly proud of two of the orientation PowerPoints I created which introduced new Board members to Vikara Village and provided an overview of their upcoming responsibilities:
Similar to how my Scholars experience provided an abundance of opportunities to acknowledge my creativity and apply it, this internship also brought about growth in this area. Although it was initially intimidating to have creative control in a professional setting, rather than just an academic setting like what I was accustomed to, it was this challenge that allowed me to develop and gain more certainty in these skills. Receiving positive feedback on my work and seeing the resources I designed being utilized for the organization's benefit helped instill greater confidence in my creative efforts. Additionally, being able to produce these materials according to my own creative direction helped me realize that I am more in competent in guiding projects and being a leader than I had formerly believed, which boosted my confidence in my management skills.
Moving forward, the practicum is largely applicable to my life since it gave me an increased interest in the nonprofit world and a greater awareness of how it works. As someone who highly values community outreach, the idea of getting more involved with nonprofits is compelling. I am currently not sure if this interest in nonprofits would translate to a professional setting or if I might like to contribute to a nonprofit organization's mission as a potential Board member, but having experience in this industry has incentivized me to play an active role in years to come. Furthermore, the practicum applies to my life moving forward in terms of the professional skills that I gained in the position, as this will help me reach my career-related goals in the future. For instance, the internship familiarized me with popular applications that many companies currently utilize, such as Slack, Asana, and Canva. The experience I gained with these programs boosts my professional credibility and well-roundedness, and might make me a more qualified candidate to any organization that uses these applications. Additionally, the internship has enhanced my intuitions pertaining to professional communications, as this was a major aspect of the role. Although there were many shifting tasks and responsibilities in the practicum, maintaining communication with members of the Board of Directors who hold great authority and value in a nonprofit organization, as well as the volunteers, was a fixed role of the position. This increased my level of comfort with such communications, which I will be sure to apply in future hiring processes and career life in general.
My updated resume:
For the rest of my time at UMD, I intend on continuing my studies in Accounting and Information Systems. I hope to graduate in May 2023 with 150 academic credits so that I am able to sit for the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam directly following the completion of my undergraduate career. Additionally, I would love to make the most of the rest of my time at UMD by increasing my involvement in the clubs and organizations I am currently affiliated with. For instance, I plan on running for leadership positions in my professional fraternity and continuing my service work with Terps for Change. I am also hoping to get involved in more clubs that relate to my professional goals, such as the Accounting and Business Association, as well as my personal interests, such as the Sustainable Ocean Alliance. To heighten my professional growth during my undergraduate career, I will seek out accounting internships. Ideally, the internships I pursue during my undergraduate years will develop strong professional relationships and open up potential job opportunities for me following graduation. I would also love to be able to travel more post-graduation once I have the means to do so, and I would consider travelling for work to help fulfill this goal. I hope to initially work in a public accounting firm, such as Deloitte or KPMG, but I am open to exploring other careers based on what I learn from future internships and what kinds of opportunities are available to me with a CPA license.