Blaise A. KernThe National Security Internship Program (NSIP) at IWP, led by Melissa Juarbe-Pratt and Inna Osetrova, was highly recommended to me as I searched for internships. I find it misrepresented by its name. This is not a simple research position—it is many internships wrapped into one. For someone who had never been to D.C., never worked in policy, and had never been trained in research, this was the best possible introduction to all of those things and more. I have come away feeling prepared for the years ahead in this field and in this city and well equipped with experiences and connections that I am certain will continue to serve me. These experiences spanned the entire spectrum, from informal to formal and from academic to professional.
Briefings and the research project make up the most obvious bulk of the program. We had written briefings due at the end of each week, which we then presented orally to small groups of graduate students and fellow interns. Although we did this eight times, we were never given the chance to become complacent or bored. The instant we mastered intelligence briefings, we began to give policy recommendations. The instant we mastered policy recommendations, they began bringing in subject matter experts, senior in their respective fields, to evaluate and question us.
Alongside these weekly briefings, we had long-running research projects, for which we were split into groups. My group researched soft power. We each wrote multiple long-form research papers, and as a group, we proposed an NGO to prospective donors. In addition to the group papers, we wrote individual papers in the same domain. Our team leader and our team’s graduate research assistant helped me shape mine into a candidate for publication—a long-standing personal goal.
Another key part of the program was the weekly Civic Thought and Statecraft Seminar and debate with Dr. McCranor—a highlight for many of us. As a future student at IWP, I found it a sneak peek at the class dynamics and teaching style of the Institute. I enjoyed studying the intersection of Western philosophy, international relations, and the history of the American Revolution. To cement the knowledge, in the final week of the program, we participated in a three-way debate, judged not only on our public speaking and debating abilities but also on our grasp of the concepts.
Professional development and fireside chats were the most actionable elements of the program. As often as four times a week, the program invites leaders from both government and the private sector to talk to us about their career paths, give us professional advice, and answer any questions we had. Not a single week went by this summer that I didn’t walk away from a lecture or interview with a piece of information that drastically changed the way I think about my aspirations and career goals. That sort of insight only comes from people who have spent years in the position you one day wish to hold, and the program put us in those conversations in a way we could never have arranged on our own.
We also participated in a great deal else. We visited museums and other institutions around the city. We learned how to wargame from the same person who trains the military on combat simulations. We were invited to graduate events, networking socials, and open houses. NSIP does something no other internship I have held has managed: it fuses the academic and the professional to give you the full picture of D.C. The program also acknowledges that internships are temporary—and that a good one should equip you to succeed after it ends. It is by merging all these aspects and values that IWP has created such an incredible internship.
Blaise A. Kern
National Security Research Intern, Summer 2026
Arizona State University, Class of 2026
blaise.going-rogue.com