Sophie Torres
For her third and final piece on her experience as an intern through the Publishing Certificate Program and Humanities Internships program, student writer Sophie Torres reflects on the closing chapter of her undergraduate career and her internship with PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program. In this essay, she considers how the transition from classroom learning to professional experience helped her build confidence, adaptability, and a clearer sense of purpose as she prepares for life after graduation.
As the semester comes to an end and summer inches closer, students begin their seasonal scramble to finish finals. Sitting quietly in libraries and cafes, we put our heads down, churning out essays and final projects, highlighting textbooks, and trying to soak in as much information as we can before final exams. As I myself hunker down to complete my last assignments, it has dawned on me that these may be the last essays I write as an undergraduate. This can be a scary thought for some, but, truthfully, it fills me with both a sense of relief and a touch of grief.
Approximately five months ago, I was offered an internship through the Publishing Certificate Program with PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program, an experience I would not trade for the world. The realities of leaving the comfort of academia to enter the real-world job market can be frightening, but they don't have to be.
As I discovered in my internship search, companies don’t expect interns to arrive as experts. Much like classroom expectations, the professional world is scaled to your willingness and ability to learn. Like most, I arrived at my first intern shifts nervous and unsure of myself. I discovered quickly, however, that the skills I had developed through service jobs in my adolescence—communication and problem-solving—were just as vital as my academic background. To my surprise, navigating an office was not so different from managing a busy restaurant floor: it simply required a different kind of professional posture. As my time at PEN America progressed, I came to realize that adaptability is the most versatile skill you can obtain. The truth is, every job position has its drawbacks, but I can say with absolute certainty that there is not a single thing I would change about my time at PEN America. Whether it is navigating complex postal protocols, managing high volumes of correspondence, or meeting short editorial deadlines, I have come to learn that the real world rewards those who can adapt even when the instructions are not clearly laid out in a syllabus.
I am forever grateful to those who make the Publishing Certificate Program (PCP) and Humanities Internship Program (Hi) here at CCNY. These programs are specifically designed to facilitate a smooth transition from education to employment. By making an industry internship a final requirement, the program forces students to step out from the theoretical and into the practical. The PCP does more than just teach the mechanics of publishing; it provides a support network—through leaders like Athena Devlin and Dr. Marisa Hollywood (Publishing Certificate Program and Humanities Internships directors, respectively)—that helps students translate their academic passions into marketable skills. When looking back to my first appointment with Marisa, I can see a profound shift in my sense of confidence. This experience helped me bridge the gap and progress slowly from a student with a love of books to a professional who understands the systems that allow those stories to reach the world.
This experience has also shown me that entering the workforce demands a level of emotional maturity that only comes from engaging with the "real-world" challenges. My time at PEN America exposed me to the fragile, complicated systems of the carceral state: teaching me that professional work often involves advocating for the human spirit in the face of administrative control, replacing my academic nerves with a tangible sense of purpose.
As I prepare to trade in textbooks for manuscripts, I see that this internship has given me more than just a degree and a certificate. It has shown me how resilience and empathy can cross miles of red tape, and that although the transition from classroom to cubicle can be overwhelming, we are often better prepared than we think. The relief I feel today isn't just about finishing my last essay—it’s about knowing that I am ready for whatever lies on the other side.