Washington Semester Program
Internships in the nation's capital are most easily available through the Lutheran College Washington Semester Program, which was founded in 1986 by a core group of Lutheran colleges to provide a quality residential Washington, D.C. semester exclusively for their students. The LCWS is a small, personalized program where you live, study, and intern while earning academic credit from Roanoke College. Students take two, one-unit academic courses taught by professors from surrounding universities as well as a two-unit internship.
In recent years, Roanoke College students attending the program have interned at the White House, the U.S. Supreme Court, the State Department, the Organization of American States, the D.C. Corporation Counsel, the ACLU, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the D.C. Rape Crisis Center, and on Capitol Hill.
Supreme Court Internship
“I honestly still can’t believe it. I’m just in awe of the building. I felt so lucky. I got to walk in there every day and report for work.”
Kaylee Miller '25
Student Placements
Olivia Kitt ’20, a political science major, interned at Sen. Tim Kaine’s office.
Jessica Civetta '20, is a business administration major interning at So Others Might Eat, a nonprofit that helps and supports residents of the nation’s capital experiencing homelessness and poverty.
Elleri Vitwar ’20, a criminal justice major who is interning with the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project.
Nolan Webb interning in the Rayburn House Building.
Erin Keating studied Shakespeare at the Smithsonian Castle, in Washington DC, and later ended up getting the Fulbright Scholarship to continue to study Shakespeare abroad in the UK.
Macauley Etheridge '20, while interning at C-SPAN.
Abigail Supplee ’20, an Environmental Studies and political science double-major who interned at the American Public Health Association, Center for Climate Change, Health, and Equity.
Wesley Knowles, interning in Washington, DC.
Claudia Jacobs ’20, met Holocaust survivor, Esther Starobin, while interning at the National Holocaust Museum.
Group of students that experienced the Washington Semester in 2019.
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Roanoke College's D.C. program is a unique opportunity to dive into life in a new city and get resume-building experience while still taking your required courses.
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Nine students spent the semester living and working in the nation’s capital through Roanoke College’s partnership with the Lutheran College Washington Semester program.
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The business administration major was recognized for her insightful analysis and ability to draw connections between complex, multifaceted themes.
