Over the summer, Michael was fortunate enough to intern with The Commonwealth Foundation in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Originally seeing the job posting on Handshake, Michael was first drawn in by the idea of working in a government related field. “I later found out that the internship was recommended by the Business/Economics department for the Gladstone Whitman program” Michael said.

Michael stated that his Economics Research Methods class helped prepare him the most for the internship. “The class was extremely beneficial in teaching me how to not only gather data, but also how to then model and present the data with accuracy”. This exposure to economics in a political setting helped Michael realize a future in government work might be the right fit for him down the road.

“Of all the important lessons I learned throughout this internship, no other was as important as having good critical thinking skills” Michael recognized that all economic problems at their base revolve around distributing a finite amount of resources. “This internship helped me realize the scope of money being used in the government, and just how hard it is to manage it”.

Michaels favorite part throughout this whole experience was going to sit in on government hearings and learning the ways in which the state of Pennsylvania’s government operates. He was excited to also be able to meet many candidates for the Pennsylvania state Governor position next year.

Outside of school, Michael is a bookworm. He credits his love for reading at a young age for sparking his interest in history!

Written by Christian Maienshein ’22