Announcement
As an immigration intern at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Salt Lake City, Desi Crane spent her summer supporting refugees, asylees and other immigrants as they navigated the U.S. immigration system.
Desi worked with the immigration team to support the provision of several services to individuals, including immigration status changes and obtaining travel documents. After serving a mission in Ukraine, Desi said she applied to the IRC wanting to become more involved with the refugee crisis. With law school in mind, Desi said she thought completing an internship at the IRC would be a great experience for her as she focuses on her future educational pursuits and career.
As an immigration intern at the International Rescue Committee, Desi Crane spent her summer supporting clients as they navigated through the U.S. immigration process.
Photo: Desi Crane
“Being able to work under an attorney and with the immigration team was a great opportunity for me, not only to understand the legal immigration process but also how the laws impact clients,” Desi said.
During her internship, Desi managed and organized immigration letters and travel documents, while also learning how to fill out applications for green cards and other immigration documents. With all the tasks she was given, Desi said the initial learning process was a lot to take in but also fun.
“There’s definitely a learning curve when it comes to being a new intern, so it was really exciting when things started to click,” said Desi, who had to familiarize herself with the different types of applications and jargon associated with them.
Throughout her time at the IRC, Desi said one of the most rewarding parts of her work was knowing she was directly helping the people she was supporting, even if it was something as small as reminding them about their next appointment.
“It was rewarding to reach the end of the day and know that I did something that had a positive impact on someone’s life,” Desi said. “I was grateful for the opportunity to play my part and to help our clients take their own steps during the immigration process.”
After completing her internship, Desi said she felt the IRC showed her what it’s like to work in a public service role directly with the community, as well as identifying the workplace qualities she was looking for in an organization. Giving credit to “fantastic mentors from the immigration team,” Desi said her team showed her the ropes of working in a professional environment, and she now has a better understanding of empathy from her work with those served by the IRC in Salt Lake City.
“It was really humanizing knowing that anyone can go through those experiences,” Desi said. “I think it’s made me a better human and shown that we’re all just trying to do our best and trying to help others do their best.”
The IRC in Salt Lake City's fall intern cohort participants have just kicked off their semester! Learn how to apply for a spring internship here »
