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Chase Blazek | Internship Spotlight

Chase Blazek

Chase Blazek, INTA Class of 2020

  1. Where and with whom did you do your internship?
    I did my internship in Washington, DC, with the US-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Council (USABC).
  2. What were your primary responsibilities?
    My responsibilities included researching news, political, and regulatory developments in Indonesia and Laos as well as those related to information and communications technology (ICT). I wrote weekly business briefs for our 160+ member companies, informing them of the latest legal and business environment developments in their areas. I also met with personnel from the US government, foreign governments, and US private sector organizations to coordinate USABC’s stance on different issues affecting the ease of doing business. In response to specific regulations in the ASEAN region, I helped draft USABC submissions commenting on new regulations and delivered them to foreign ministers of technology or foreign prime ministers.
  3. Which of your previous classes or learning experiences were most useful to you during the internship?
    My Special Topics course, Internet Infrastructures and Platform Politics, with Dr. Sowell was extremely helpful in that it gave me good context from which to speak on complicated international technology issues. Also, my Chinese Domestic Politics in Transition and Chinese Foreign Policy classes with Dr. Norris helped me to be an in-house China expert for my office, which is helpful given that China’s economy is so interconnected with ASEAN economies.
  4. What were the highlights or most important learning opportunities from your internship experience?
    The biggest highlights from my internship were the chances I got to meet impactful policy makers and government officials, like ambassadors or high-level staff from ASEAN embassies. I also got to meet one of my favorite China experts, Jude Blanchette, at multiple private meetings on Chinese economic and foreign policy, at think tanks like the Center for New American Security, and at other private DC organizations like the US-China Business Council.
    I learned that success with organizations like USABC depends on my ability to quickly become an expert on new topics when I’m assigned to high-demand portfolios. For example, the ICT portfolio was assigned to me to learn about international law, emerging technologies, public policy in foreign countries dedicated to supporting ICT development, and other related subjects. When I applied myself to learning about these new areas, I quickly became an in-house and external-facing authority on these topics.
  5. Do you have any advice for first-year Bush School students who may be applying for an internship for this summer?
    Pay attention to the people you interview with and the opportunities an organization will give you. Name recognition of the organization is not the most important thing. Make sure that the organization will allow you to contribute to real projects on a daily basis, not just devote your time to disposable intern projects. And if the people you interview with seem like they are kind, professional, and open to giving you new opportunities, these are the kind of people you want to work with.