What I Learned During My Summer at The Met

The very first time I applied for an internship at The Met was my junior year of high school. Unfortunately, I did not put so much effort into the application because I had lots going on. What I learned from that experience is that if you really want something, you have to work really hard to obtain it. Not getting an interview made me want the internship that much more. I began filling out the application for the summer internship before it had even opened for submissions.

I wanted to make the application personal to me. I believed in being as authentic as I possibly could to remain true to my experiences and interests. I worked really hard and recall showing my essay answers to almost anyone that would listen because, this time around, it was a priority. I was fortunate enough to be offered a position as a summer high school intern, and it probably has been one of my most memorable experiences.

Growing up, I couldn't have imagined experiencing The Met the way I did during my internship. Before, when I came on school trips, I was given an assignment. I thought that was as far as my experience could go.

But the internship experience was bigger than that. Beside learning tasks like building charts, printing, working on Excel spreadsheets, becoming a better note-taker and observer, and writing emails, I learned about the structure of work. Because of this internship, I now know that I like having a nine-to-five schedule (even though I worked from ten to four).

As a part of the Education Department, I was able to sit in meetings and help plan public programs that would be held during the rest of the year. Through those meetings, I was able to see how individuals work on different events but keep each other in the loop and provide feedback to better the given activity or program. I saw a strong team and I felt part of it. I was included in a lot of the planning for The Met's involvement with Afropunk 2018. To be given things to do made me feel useful and helpful in contributing to my department.

I also sat in on meetings that gave me introductions about each aspect of the Education Department, like audience development, accessibility and public programs, and creative practices. I learned about the Kenan Project, in which a cohort of institutions is attempting to attract audiences of diverse backgrounds, which is an amazing opportunity for the generations to come.

At The Met, I got to see people from all different walks of life. The employees had studied many different things, ranging from psychology to neuroscience, and obviously art history. I saw that through weekly Career Labs, where a panel of Met staffers gave insight to interns on their career paths and the unlikelihood of it being linear. Through those events, I learned about things that could only make me a better individual, ready for college and ready for the workforce.

For a teen in high school, almost ready to go off to college, seeing these successful individuals giving us advice about the future eased me of any anxiety that comes along with uncertainty. Not only that, the teen interns got to know each other by name. In our boot camp prior to the beginning of the program, we did tons of redundant icebreakers and an exhausting name game. Regardless of the tediousness, it helped us become a lot more comfortable with one another. We were able to share our experiences and relate to each other throughout the internship; The Met had connected us, as cheesy as that may sound.

I learned that people who work here are people who are welcoming and accepting. It is not an elitist, cutthroat institution. I experienced first-hand the key of collaboration here. I never felt that I needed to do things on my own, or that I couldn't ask questions. In fact, at many points I didn't have questions by the end of a certain activity because I had a cohort of people that walked me through things to make them simpler.

One obstacle I overcame was my skill with conversation. I became a lot better at speaking with people and not shying away from engaging with those around me. Because of this experience, I was able to network successfully and became more intrigued with institutions like this one.

My mentor, Alyssa Eble, made this internship one of the best experiences because she was very enabling. She gave me the opportunity to work with her colleagues, sit in meetings, and walk through the galleries to learn more about the actual artworks that hung on the walls of the building that I was fortunate enough to work in. Alyssa constantly made sure that along the way, I was able to work on my goals and my interests, which is the reason I am even able to write for Now at The Met.

I feel that I have become a more well-rounded person and less afraid of trying new experiences. Everything that you do will teach you something, whether you find out you like it or not. The biggest reason for my applying to the internship was to further my experiences—and that it did. I'm walking away having had the chance to meet other high school students who share this in common. I'm walking away having worked alongside a bunch of professionals that are willing to help out others. I'm walking away having learned what it takes to be a part of an organization that stands for something and has goals in welcoming all sorts of people. This is more than just a fancy building with the famous steps and fountains out front; it's an institution filled with smaller communities making the whole.