A Newsletter for Friends and Alumni of the University of Washington
Student Spotlight: Lyset Cadena, Evans School of Public Affairs

This winter Lyset Cadena will be applying some of the knowledge she’s gained while earning a master’s degree at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs. But she won’t be in the classroom. Cadena is spending winter quarter in Olympia, completing a two-part legislative internship with the Office of Program Research.

As an intern with the nonpartisan research analysis arm of the Washington State House of Representatives, Cadena is gaining real-life experience in the policy arena, where she has found her calling. “I hope to write policy or affect policy with my research,” she says of her future career goals. “My internship is what really ingrained in me that this is the path that I want to take. Beforehand i didn’t really know what i wanted to do with my degree. With the internship, the light bulb went on, and I knew that this is what i want my career to be.”

In the first part of her internship last summer, Cadena learned how to conduct research, analyze policy, write bills and testify before committees. now she is putting those skills into practice. “This is when our training really comes into play,” she says. “I get to write bills, which is incredible in itself. To write something that might be passed and turned into law is quite impressive.”

Cadena is already looking past her graduation in June. Last fall she was one of five evans school students chosen to travel to Washington, D.C. for informational interviews with policy organizations, a trip funded by an anonymous friend of the Evans School. “D.C. is where I’m hoping for and where I’d really like to be,” she says. Like the internship, the trip gave her important insights into what her future might hold. “I don’t think i would have had these opportunities if I were with a different university or a different program.”

For more on the Evans School, visit http://evans.washington.edu.

Return to Winter 2008 Campaign Newsletter