The Tanner Conference opened my eyes to so many new career opportunities. Here are some of the best ways my peers spent their summers.
7. MAGA-zine making: Launching WIFF (pioneered by Wellesley Intellectuals For Fascism (WIFF)
As creative director for the new Wellesley Intellectuals For Fascism (WIFF) initiative, I spent my summer rummaging through the storage lockers containing all of the books that were removed from Clapp for renovations. Before picking out which ones we should burn, I went through and found a bunch of pages with super cute illustrations for my zine-making workshop next week! Hope to see you there!
6. JD Vance’s Makeup Artist
As a Theatre Studies major & poli sci minor, getting to intern with such a high-profile celebrity right off the bat was an amazing opportunity. Through this truly immersive experience, I was able to master the art of the no-makeup-makeup-look. At first, he was resistant to anything besides his signature smoldering “guyliner,” but by the end, we worked our way up to a full twelve-step glam beat.
He even let me try out my stage prosthetic work-—with just a little strategic brown eyeshadow and some silicon, I was able to transform his hands into that of a working man. I couldn’t have done this without the help of Career Services, who gave me such great advice on how to cater my resume to the applications like: ‘Ctrl + F’ for “Wellesley College,” then ‘Ctrl + Shift + V “The Ohio State University.”
My passion for investigative journalism hit a wall after exploring traditional avenues like print media and TikTok man-on-the-street style, so I turned to documentaries.
My angle: I’d be posing as a college student looking to gain some experience through an internship with an undercover documentary crew. Career Ed helped me come up with an alias, falsify a transcript and look over “my” cover letter. While my subjects/ coworkers worked tirelessly, secretly capturing film of some cult they’d been infiltrating, I did some investigating of my own: What is the true lived experience of a documentarian? Is this a job I could envision for myself? What is the starting salary? Ultimately, I uncovered that undercover work isn’t for me, since apparently posting regular updates to LinkedIn is frowned upon.
This summer, while my fellow sibs took on Wellesley in Washington, I fulfilled my civic duties by actively commenting on every Kamala Coconut Tree™ edit. I reposted every “brat” remix with great fervor and got a $5,000 stipend from Career Ed! #SignatureInternship
3. Doing Drugs (full time)
I got to pursue my passion!
2. Trump’s Neurologist
I’m going to be honest: I was a little late to the whole finding an internship thing; furthermore, there weren’t many opportunities for Creative Writing majors like myself. That being said, I really enjoyed how immersive this internship was. I’d recommend this position to any students looking for a viable yet undemanding side gig.
1. Amplifying Queer Voices
As an ally working with Wellesley’s LGBTQ Center I realized the best thing I can do (other than listening) is just putting in the work to make sure the contributions of gay people are heard. That’s why I spent my summer repeating everything my queer sibs said, only louder. Being a human megaphone isn’t always easy, but it sure feels good for the soul!!
Tanners of notable mention:
Awards for…
- Most inspiring:
- Drop shipping via TikTok shop
- Most worthwhile:
- Tanning
- Greatest community impact:
- Timothee Chalamet Look Alike Contest pub chair
- Most creative:
- Blake Lively PR Advisor
- Most lucrative:
- Campaigning for Jill Stein
- Most exhausting:
- Meta intern (scrolled on IG all summer
