Beneath the paperwork lies passion: UA student finds her calling through her internship

Every individual has a unique story to share, and there's nothing more fulfilling than expressing it. Gwen Bushen, a senior at The University of Akron (UA), embodies this philosophy. 

Originally, Bushen only pursued a degree in English. However, she quickly decided to add a second major when she realized her latent passion for philosophy. She took comfort in her decision knowing the skills the degree offers.

When I took my first philosophy class, Tech and Human Values, I loved the class so much,” she exclaimed. “It truly sparked my interest in philosophy and remains one of my favorite classes to this day. I added the philosophy major to increase my critical thinking skills and get the opportunity to learn more about different epistemologies and ways of thinking.”

An internship and something greater 

After Bushen added her second major, it was time for her to look for a summer internship. At the time, she considered attending law school after graduation – and her majors reflected this consideration. Despite not having professional experience in the legal industry, she prepared herself for an internship by participating in numerous extracurricular activities and applying lessons she learned in her classes. 

Bushen’s extracurricular activities also played a key role in helping her prepare for her internship. “Being a part of the judicial branch of Undergraduate Student Government (USG) was vital,” Bushen explained. “In this role, I am able to advocate for the student body and familiarize myself with the constitution and bylaws of the organization. It has given me the most direct experience working within a governing body and has helped me develop professionally throughout my three years in the organization.”

While applying for internships, she focused on the legal industry and secured a legal internship working alongside Judge Katarina Cook at the Summit County Domestic Relations Court.  

Bushen's role varied from day to day, but she consistently observed hearings and trials. As assignments, she was given court orders, cases and transcripts to review, and wrote fact patterns (the legal term for “summary”), which would assist the judge when objections or additional motions occurred.

“My courses aided me when reading through the hundreds of pages of orders, since I was able to easily comprehend the cases and succinctly analyze what would be important for the fact pattern. The skills I developed through my coursework allowed me to easily complete these fact patterns and submit them in a timely manner,” said Bushen proudly. 

Right from the start, she knew the internship would be special, “Judge Cook was so welcoming when I met her, I immediately knew I wanted to spend my summer internship at her court, " said Bushen. “I knew that she was somebody I could reach out to when I had questions and she would help me grow, even outside the scope of the internship.”

“Something greater” 

Before attending UA, Bushen had a passion for reading and writing, hence her decision to major in English. What she did not expect was to affirm a stagnant passion during her internship, one that was buried deep in the piles of court orders, cases, transcripts and fact patterns. This new passion would help shape her future career path. 

“I had a love of reading and writing prior to the internship, but during the course of my internship I was discovering my love of sharing others’ stories due to my role at the University of Akron Press and the courses I had taken,” said Bushen. “Being able to read so many different cases and seeing so many people in court tell their stories affirmed my desire to share different stories.”

Bushen also cites USG and her involvement in Alpha Gamma Delta sorority as helping her further realize her passion, “As one of the main pillars of the judicial branch is advocacy for the student body. Prioritizing distribution of resources to students and representing the voice of the student body in such a way has contributed to my love of helping others.”

 “I also love doing community service, mostly through my sorority, as we participate as a group in various service events,” she says, one core value is service, helping others in whatever capacity possible. My favorite type of service event is packing food bags for after- school programs.”

With a passion for the publishing and editing field and helping others tell their stories, Bushen plans to pursue a career publishing and editing field and will use the skills she learned from her internship, vast extracurricular involvement and coursework in all her future endeavors.

 Media contact: Cristine Boyd, University of Akron; cboyd@uakron.edu