Ali Roumani – Parliamentary Internship Report 2013

Parliamentary Internship Report:  Parliamentary Office of Federal Member of Parliament Peter Julian – By: Ali Roumani

My 6 week placement was overall an exciting and rewarding experience for personal growth and development in addition to enhancing my current skills that I already use toward university. Upon entering the office I was not completely sure what to expect except for the fact that it would require the most of my current skills and that there wasn’t room to give anything less than my best effort.  As I progressed through the weeks, I learned more and more that trying to do a perfect job all the time and focusing just on the job itself was not the best way to make the most out of the experience. I learned that the key was to take in the experience as a whole and enjoy it as much as possible by taking the time to ask questions and explore things that interested me. This was made very easy since I was extremely lucky enough to work in a very friendly and hardworking office.

MP Peter Julian was continuously on the move almost never being able to take any rest. However, he always had the time to say hi and check up on how I was doing. He had a very comforting presence to be around. Also the other two office members Mounia and Henri were extremely friendly and helpful. I gained valuable experience through the tasks that they both assigned to me.  The tasks assigned to me ranged from administrative work handled by Mounia, which entailed general office management and organization, to legislative work which was more concentrated on specific parliamentary areas managed by Henri.  Despite working in the same office the two of them operate in almost completely different worlds which are connected together by MPs needs and campaigns throughout his session at Parliament.

Perhaps the best feeling was when they referred to me as “part of the family”. After I heard this, I felt that all pressure from me to try to prove myself was lifted and that I can work as if I’ve been there my entire lifetime, and it was that feeling that made the experience for me all the more enjoyable and beneficial.

Posted on August 27, 2013