One story that I am always hesitant to tell at first is the one about how exactly I landed at ABT during the summer of 2017. But, I feel that there is no better way for me to express how honored and grateful I am to be one of the interns selected for this semester:
I had first applied to be an intern the summer after my freshman year of college (2015) and had received an email months later about how my application had been rejected. “No matter,” I told myself. After all, I still had so many years of school left to go and I could “always apply again.” Well, I definitely did keep to my word and applied for a second time two years later. As you may have guessed, I was rejected- yet again. Finally, I decided to apply for a third time and told myself that if I didn’t get it this time around, I would give up and move on to other interests. However, to my surprise, I was checking my email one day when I noticed a message from the Special Events Manager saying that she was having trouble contacting me. Long story short, I had gotten the internship!
I’m proud to say that after my time here at ABT, it was worth the wait! I have been so lucky to have wonderful mentors (Claire and Gwen!) who always made sure that I knew exactly why I was doing something, what it would be used for, and how I could accomplish my task. I can honestly say that everyone at ABT has been more than willing to help interns learn about the organization or a specific department. From my time at ABT, I had the chance to experience first hand things like how to staff a dress rehearsal and consider each step of the event planning process.
Lastly, I would like to say that the weekly intern meetings are an important aspect of ABT’s internship program that really make it stand out from the rest. These meetings allowed us to meet people in other departments and talk about not just job duties, but also their career trajectory and the steps along the way to their current position. They were also really important because it showed me that ABT was investing in our education/learning. They weren’t just looking for an extra set of hands to help out- they were genuinely committed to our professional development so that we can work in all spheres of performing arts administration and the non-profit sector even after our time at 890.
Jennifer Ly
Special Events Intern
Summer 2017
abt interns 
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