Benjamin Brauer: Voting Captain
This fall, Benjamin Brauer, a political science undergraduate student, was a Voting Captain for the Row the Vote campaign led by the University of Minnesota's Undergraduate Student Government. Read the below Q&A to learn more about his internship experience.
How did you find this internship?
I found this internship through a mass email that the Undergraduate Student Government sent out and decided to apply. I had some previous experience in election work, as I was an election poll worker, so I thought that I would be a good fit for the position.
What were your primary responsibilities?
My responsibilities included organizing and participating in voter registration and pledge events, such as tabling on campus and conducting class visits to engage students in the Row the Vote campaign. I coordinated volunteers, distributed materials, and provided students with information about registering and pledging to vote, resulting in over 1,500 registered voters and 11,000 pledge commitments. Additionally, I helped plan larger events like Voterpalooza and facilitated voter outreach on Election Day.
What did you learn from your internship?
I learned how to connect with all kinds of students and professors by figuring out how to adjust my approach depending on the situation. Whether it was talking to a big class, chatting one-on-one at tabling events, or working with professors to get students involved, I got really comfortable engaging with different people and encouraging them to take part in something important. It taught me a lot about building connections and getting people excited about voting.
What was your biggest takeaway?
My biggest takeaway is that we need to practice talking to individuals who have different views than us. Throughout this election, friends would attack friends and siblings would attack siblings. Rather than saying "you're wrong and here's why," we need to begin our conversations with "tell me more, why do you believe that?" Begin the conversation with curiosity and try to understand it from the perspective of the other person. We live in a society where there is so much noise and everyone is always trying to yell on top of one another. When you engage in this conversation, listen to the person and listen to them actively.
What are your future career goals? How did this internship prepare you for this future?
While I am not certain that this will be the career path I choose, my initial career goal is to attend law school after completing my four years of undergrad. Because I am split between law school and doing something along the lines of becoming an elected official, I believe this opportunity gave me new insight. It gave me the chance to see what the politics side would look like.
How did POL 3080: Internship in Politics or Government enhance your internship experience?
The internship course enhanced my experience by forcing me to do a lot of reflecting and thinking after each week. It was also convenient that the readings I was doing for the class overlapped very well with the work that I was doing, so the text-to-real-life connection also made it better. Finally, I would say that the associated work alongside it was really helpful because now I already have the bullet points for my resume for when I choose to add this experience to it.
What advice would you give to students interested in this type of internship?
I would say 100% go for it. We have an amazing political science department with phenomenal faculty, but at the end of the day, getting real life experience in the field is not knowledge you can obtain in a classroom. Doing internships like this help you form a path, and college is a time when many people are searching for one.