State Department OLA Internship/Interview Forum

[aegor]

I applied for the OLA internship through my school's OCI and have an interview coming up. The program seems interesting and right up my alley, but I applied without doing a ton of research on how it works.

All I could glean is that it seems to be competitive. I have no idea what to expect during my 30-minute interview. Is it just a screener? Is there a longer one down the line? Is it generally behavioral or substantive? How many interviewed people ultimately get offers?

It all seems a bit odd because I did not have to submit some things (e.g. reference list) the website said I would have to if I were applying directly to the program. All I had to submit was resume, cover letter, and transcript.

If anyone has any insights about the program, the interview, or the application process, please let me know.

[Anonymous User]

I applied for the OLA internship through my school's OCI and have an interview coming up. The program seems interesting and right up my alley, but I applied without doing a ton of research on how it works.

All I could glean is that it seems to be competitive. I have no idea what to expect during my 30-minute interview. Is it just a screener? Is there a longer one down the line? Is it generally behavioral or substantive? How many interviewed people ultimately get offers?

It all seems a bit odd because I did not have to submit some things (e.g. reference list) the website said I would have to if I were applying directly to the program. All I had to submit was resume, cover letter, and transcript.

If anyone has any insights about the program, the interview, or the application process, please let me know.

No insights on the interview - hopefully someone else can chime in here (or if you already did it, please follow up).

I interned at State during Law School but not with 'L.' I really enjoyed it, as I was able to use my Law School background to help with some low level Agreements/Resolutions. I had to run things by our L Office quite a bit and never ran into an intern. Those folks in L seemed stretched thin. There were a few other Law School interns in different Bureaus/Offices outside L. I know an Attorney who was with State a while and enjoyed it. He never interned there and I'm not sure how many folks get offers generally. If you get an offer I'd jump on it.

[Anonymous User]

OP. Thanks for the response. The interview went well -- relatively brief, completely behavioral. Reference checks have started.

I would be very excited about working there, but why do you say I should "jump on it"?

[aegor]

OP again bringing closure. Last week, I was offered a full-time, semester-long externship position with L. I intend to accept.