This summer, student Valerie Bonk participated in the Associated Press’ Global News Internship Program in the Washington D.C. office. Read about the experience in her own words and check out her photos from the summer.
Valerie Bonk
This summer I had the opportunity to participate in AP’s Global News Internship Program. The three-month, paid, cross-format, rigorous reporting position was by far the most challenging and rewarding experience of my career so far. The application process was intense. In addition to your resume and cover letter, you also need three letters of recommendation, an essay, and if selected, need to pass a panel interview with the heads of the various departments you’d be working with (text, radio and television). I would do it again in a heartbeat. I would have never imagined that I’d have the opportunity to report from the White House at this stage in my career. I’m forever grateful for the connections I’ve made and the knowledge I’ve gained from some of the leading reporters, editors and producers in the industry. Here’s a snapshot of my summer with the AP:

My desk in the Associated Press Washington newsroom complete with the “Associated Press Guide to News Writing,”: the AP Stylebook and Starbucks of course.

My Associated Press business cards given to us on the first week of our program. Quite an honor!

Former President Bill Clinton shaking hands after speaking at Arlington National Cemetery. My very first assignment on my first week was to cover the event where Clinton and Attorney General Eric Holder spoke at a remembrance ceremony for Civil Rights icon Medgar Evers.
At the White House covering a ceremony. Throughout this experience I had the amazing opportunity to cover several events and press conferences at the White House and Capitol Hill. During our first week we went over to the Capitol to get our congressional credentials, which opened many doors throughout the summer.

President Obama honors former president George Bush at the White House during a ceremony honoring volunteers.

One of the highlights of the program was getting to see President Obama board Marine One and depart from the White House.

AP photographer Charles Dharapak writes captions for his photos at a press conference where Abigail Fisher spoke about her Supreme Court affirmative action case.

AP cameraman Dan Huff shoots footage for a story about the excruciating summer heat in DC.

For my television piece on the high cost of prison phone callsI conducted several interviews with inmates and their families. In this picture I am at the FCC interviewing a former inmate who was sexually abused while in prison and couldn’t afford to call home. I was awarded an internal AP “Best Seen” award for the piece, which aired on August 8.