Her Story
About jeraly
Jeraly Tejada is a pre-law undergraduate student at the University of Delaware entering her third year with a major in international relations. As a first-generation Hispanic whose family immigrated from the Dominican Republic about 20 years ago, she developed an early interest in immigration processes, psychology, and criminology. Her high school experiences with Model UN and exposure to global issues through UNICEF shifted her focus toward international relations and a desire to work with the United Nations, though an internship at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office renewed her passion for helping people on a local scale. Jeraly participates in the Student Advisory Council for the Biden Institute, ICMA for community initiatives, a pre-law fraternity, and a sorority. She values consideration, loyalty, and maintaining an unserious approach to life while aspiring to attend law school after graduating early. Her notable achievement includes securing an internship at the Suffolk County DA's office through LinkedIn outreach, where she was the youngest in her bureau, and she has an upcoming interview with the Inspector General of Delaware.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with jeraly
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
My best advice I've ever gotten was from my band teacher in high school who told me to demand excellence. He said you know what you want and what you need to do to get there, so if something is not giving you what you need then move on. Demand excellence, don't ask for it, just demand it.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice is to always go for it. Always say yes and do things that sound scary because at the end of it the worst you can hear is no and the worst that can happen is you have a story. So I always say go for it. Talk to everyone possible and just keep going.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge is putting aside your personal values and how that aligns because you have to see everything on such a big scale. You're dealing with people on the worst days of their life so sometimes just being considerate and taking away your personal beliefs and feelings is the biggest challenge. You have to keep moving regardless of what's thrown your way.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
My first one is always consideration. I think you should always consider those around you. This one's a weird one but unseriousness. I think you should do things your own way and not everything's too serious. You can kind of let loose sometimes. And on top of that I think my last one would just be loyalty because you should stay loyal to yourself and what you believe is right but also to those around you.
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