The Fletcher School, MALD 2017
Of the many things I had in mind for the summer in between my first and second years of graduate school, being a 27 year old intern was not one of them. And yet, now halfway through my 10 week stint at the Pentagon, I can confidently say these past few weeks on the Syria Desk have been some of the most professionally fulfilling of my short career.
A baptism-by-fire assignment if there ever was one, life on the Syria Desk has already left its share of bumps and bruises. At any time, the team is constantly churning out informational briefs, action memos, meeting read-outs, public affairs talking points, responses to Congressional inquiries, and more, about the ever-changing security environment in Syria and along its borders. The sheer amount of information which passes through my inbox each day is staggering – and I’m not even privy to all of the classified systems.
