U.S. Embassy Chisinau, Moldova
For eight weeks this summer, I lived in Chisinau, Moldova, where I worked in the Regional Security Office (RSO) of the local U.S. Embassy. Though I have long considered a career in the government, this was my first opportunity to experience what one possible governmental career path might entail. This internship gave me the chance not only to complete interesting projects, but also to speak with employees first-hand about their own paths to the Department of State. After completing this internship, I am thrilled at the prospect of continuing down this track towards a governmental career.
Going into the internship, I honestly did not know what to expect—there is little public information on Regional Security Offices, and no public information on the particular RSO of U.S. Embassy Chisinau, and though the initial interview with the RSO of the Embassy was informative, it left many questions to be answered. When I arrived in Chisinau, however, I was quickly and fully integrated into the Embassy community, which included participation in a Hail and Farewell event hosted at the Ambassador’s home, issuance of a work cell phone, and completion of a full security briefing. Surprisingly, U.S. Embassy Chisinau hadn’t seen an intern in many years, but that meant everyone was incredibly welcoming and eager to help me find my bearings at the Embassy and more generally in the city. Beyond any of the specific projects that I completed, I think my strongest and brightest memory of my internship is the sense of community I experienced throughout the entirety of my work in Chisinau.
The work itself was always unexpected—in a good way. I quickly learned that the RSO involved a multitude of different areas of work, including residential security, passport and visa fraud, training a local guard force, maintaining a program for Marine Security Guards, and keeping Embassy personnel updated on any local security threats and protests. In other words, the work was plentiful and ever changing. One of my primary projects, for instance, involved the creation of earthquake maps for every residence in which American personnel lived. Earthquakes are a serious potential threat in Moldova as neighboring Romania rests on a fault line, so every Chisinau residence needed a clear plan for how to gather in the event of a major earthquake. Thus, I designed an individual map for every home illustrating how to get from each residence to both a primary and alternate gathering point where families should convene after severe earthquakes. Ideally these maps won’t be necessary, but the work is valuable for maintaining the safety of Embassy personnel and epitomizes the work of the Regional Security Office: putting safety measures in place wherever possible to ensure that everyone remains safe in the event of an emergency.
Another major project involved updating residential security forms and writing internal memos for the Assistant Regional Security Officer (ARSO). This summer, the RSO did not have anyone hired to be the Residential Security Housing Coordinator, which meant much of that work was transferred to me. This involved touring various residences alongside the ARSO and notating what security upgrades needed to be completed before any new residences moved in. After I completed these notes, I would write memos that either stated the residence was up to code or the residence needed additional upgrades, and then give the memos to the ARSO for signature. These memos were sent to other offices in the Embassy with which the RSO worked directly. Furthermore, anytime new upgrades were completed, I updated the spreadsheet that stated the funding allowance for the upgrades and how much funding remained. Finally, I wrote an official cable (the governmental version of a grant request) to ask for additional funding to be provided to the RSO for a variety of new security upgrades. Through these tasks, I enhanced my professional writing skills and attained a better idea of how integrated Embassy offices truly are.
As the intern, I was also permitted to shadow my supervisor (who, coincidentally, ended up being a fellow Eph) through meetings with local school directors, residential security checks, Embassy management meetings, and even an X-ray scan of Embassy construction materials at the Romanian border checkpoint. These experiences were incredibly informative and useful for achieving a more integrated and accurate view of Embassy work. For example, shadowing meetings allowed me the opportunity to speak individually with other employees in other sections of work, like the Political and Economics Office and the IT section. I learned what a “typical” day looks like for each office and how passionate each person was about their own work and the Embassy’s mission.
Additionally, as a Russian major at Williams, I valued the chance to practice my Russian language skills with local native speakers. In fact, my supervisor asked that locally employed staff at the Embassy speak to me in Russian whenever possible to maximize my opportunity for application. Culturally, I also learned more about Eastern Europe and its history. I deeply appreciated the opportunity not only to intern in an Embassy for the summer, but also to imagine how my Russian skills may be useful in any future governmental career.
At the end of my internship, I wrote an article about my internship experience in RSO as one of my final projects. My supervisor suggested I explain my contributions to life within the Embassy community in an article that would be sent to the Diplomatic Security (DS) internal website. Such an article would only be accessed by Department of State employees, and DS agents in particular, so the goal of the article was to explain how an intern can contribute to an RSO. Traditionally, RSOs rarely have interns because work can be difficult to assign—information is sensitive, often official training is required, and interns only have eight weeks to help. However, my supervisor believed an intern-written article could help convince other RSOs to accept interns because, as my internship proved, we can both contribute meaningfully to an RSO and obtain a worthwhile, positive experience in return. Though I await confirmation from my supervisor about whether or not the article will end up published, it remains one of my greatest accomplishments.
Reflecting back on my internship, I can honestly say that the experience was formative and influential. I have already begun to research how I can continue down a path to the Department of State or another governmental organization, and I look forward to keeping in contact with the network of people I met in Chisinau. My Williams education will certainly help me progress along this path, and allow me to gain a multitude of experiences before settling down on one career immediately after graduation. Thus, this internship has reaffirmed my hopes to continue on towards graduate school, ideally with a gap year for new experiences, like the Peace Corps.
I would like to thank Grant Hines, Adam Lason, and Kurt Finley at the RSO of U.S. Embassy Chisinau for providing me with the opportunity to complete this internship and for making the experience itself worthwhile personally and professionally. I am also deeply grateful to the Williams College ’68 Center for Career Exploration and to Dawn Dellea for organizing this grant program—my internship experience was only possible with their support, and I’m thankful to have been provided this life-changing honor.