Why did you want to do an internship at the McCabe Centre?
If I look back to when I finished school, I had interests in both law and health. I studied biomedicine in my undergraduate degree and have subsequently gone on to study law but had not yet found a way to combine the two areas of interest. Fortunately, I came across the McCabe Centre through the Melbourne Law School’s legal internship program. The McCabe Centre internship experience has provided a valuable insight into global health law as a field, and I was incredibly excited to apply with the hope of getting to see how the team used law in the fight against cancer. It was also a unique chance to understand how law and policy interact.
What kind of things did you do during your internship?
I was fortunate enough to be able to get involved in a wide range of activities. Throughout the internship I undertook lots of research into laws, both of Australia and abroad. On one project, I was able to do a deep dive into the employment legislative schemes of several countries, which was really fascinating and engaging. There were also several exciting opportunities in which the McCabe Centre allowed me to participate. This included attending a conference, sitting in on meetings to learning how an organisation such as the McCabe Centre operates, and meeting really interesting people who work in the health law space. Some highlights for me were meeting some people from the George Institute, as well as the UN and WHO.
What was the most interesting or surprising thing you learned?
I was lucky enough to be exposed to so many new things during my time at McCabe — it is hard to pinpoint the most interesting! However, I think one aspect of the work that I had not really encountered before was the advocacy that goes with policy change. It was fascinating to learn about how organisations such as the McCabe Centre translate their work into meaningful change through advocacy, and the skills that are required to convey to lawmakers and others why certain policy positions should be adopted. I think this was an intriguing side of the work that I had not fully considered prior to my time at the McCabe Centre.
What do you hope to do in the future?
I don’t know exactly what my future looks like at this stage. Later this year I am going overseas to continue my legal studies in areas such as intellectual property and global public health law, which I am really excited about. However, despite this uncertainty, the McCabe Centre has shown me an interesting potential pathway and use of the law which I had not properly encountered before. The experience has been an amazing insight into the field of health law, and I have definitely found an interest in it.
How do you think an internship will help you with your future study/work paths?
There are a few aspects with which I think the internship will help me going forward.
Firstly, it has been a highly beneficial work experience that has allowed me to hone many skills. The extensive research I was able to do while at the McCabe Centre will be immensely helpful to my development as a lawyer, in whatever field I follow. Working in an environment such as this, whether in the office or from home has also been a really useful exercise in practicing my communication skills.
Additionally, the experience has been a deeply practical insight into the field of health law and has shown me another way that a law degree can be used. In that way it has been very clarifying, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to learn about many of the broader issues that the McCabe Centre’s work tackles.
Getting to work with the incredibly accomplished and supportive team at McCabe has been a wonderful experience. It was always a pleasure to come into work each day and learn from the team!