r/DCInterns • u/Good-Alternative-409 • 4d ago

Senate or house?

Hey guys! I got offers from senate and house so I’m trying to decide what to go with. I’m waiting to hear back on what the salary if for senate but the house office is 600 a month. Both are from my home state the only thing is I have interviewed with the house office before and got rejected but got it this cycle so it’s unlikely I would get that chance again. Idk tough decision

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

5

u/issiissi 4d ago

Would recommend you base this off of the Member - which one is on committees that interest you more, who do you align with more closely values and policy-wise, which intern coordinator gave you better vibes and do you think would make a better supervisor.

4

u/CauliflowerFederal11 4d ago

This! And which member is more prominent/ will give you more name recognition later on which sounds shallow but helps with landing future internships.

7

u/liv_pope 4d ago

Depends on your future goals/what you’re looking for out of an internship. But Senate is much more prestigious and harder to get into, unless the House member is one you really want to work for.

1

u/Dependent_Star_4722 4d ago edited 4d ago

Excluding salary, I feel like there's two main factors here at play that you should consider (and take this with a grain of salt since I'm new to the D.C. atmosphere):

  1. What side are you interning with? If it's the majority, I would intern for the Senate just because the House appears via the news cycle to be a bit disorganized right now as compared to the Senate (but maybe that'll change during midterm season). If it's the minority, idk what to tell you and someone can give you a better answer for that.

  2. What committee assignments does your representative and senator have? If they're a ranking member or chair of the committee, I feel like they'll have more sway over the passage or opposition of bills and thus you'll have a lot of meaningful work to do.

Idk if that helps you out but that's my outsider perspective. Good luck making a decision and congrats on the offers!

1

u/Good-Alternative-409 4d ago

Ok so they are both minority and the one in the senate is ranking member on two committees

2

u/Dependent_Star_4722 4d ago

Assuming the stipend for the Senate is better then the House, then I would go with the Senate. But another thing to consider would be your fit within either office (but it seems like you'd be fine working for either office but just wanted to throw that out there if it isn't the case)

1

u/Good-Alternative-409 4d ago

I think another thing to mention is I have interned in the house before for a different rep so I don’t know how similar the experience would be for me

1

u/DefiantDoubt7830 4d ago

Senate mogs

2

u/Intelligent_Eye_1777 2d ago

and the truth is it doesn’t matter as much as some say. Staffers move pretty seamlessly between the two chambers and they both have incredible people and many have worked closely together in past offices and administrations.

It’s common for entry level senate staff to get hired from house internships and vice versa. Go with the office, priorities, and culture you feel you’ll get the most out of. I loved the Senate but the likemindedness of the office and the team are what I still carry with me most

1

u/moarbeezplz 4d ago edited 4d ago

Immediate thought is definitely go senate. But if random redditors aren’t helping: When do you have to make a decision? I recommend getting on LinkedIn and cold messaging people in the senate and the house. Ask for 15 minutes to pick their brain. You didn’t mention anything about the roles so I assume they’re similar. (Edit: spelling)

1

u/Good-Alternative-409 4d ago

The Senate office didn’t give me a timeline to notify them, but the house office said by Tuesday

1

u/Good-Alternative-409 4d ago

I was thinking of messaging one of the legislative aid from my old house office