Undergraduate Institution: Vanderbilt University
Undergraduate Major: Interdisciplinary Studies
MAPSS Graduation Year: 2010
I came to MAPSS to study European political and social thought, although I hadn’t yet decided on whether to pursue a PhD in Political Theory or Philosophy. During my year at MAPSS, I gradually moved to political theory and decided to aim for doctoral programs in political science. The most important courses I took during my year were scattered among several departments. In political science, Linda Zerilli’s class on feminist political theory was crucial; in the history department, Dipesh Chakrabarty’s class on postcolonial studies moved my interests towards the history of political thought; and in philosophy, I took Candice Vogler and Jonathan Lear’s class on psychoanalysis, which was exhilarating. My MA thesis ended up exploring what contributions the philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas might make towards contemporary debates in feminist political theory. I had the amazing fortune of being advised by Patchen Markell. It was through his excellent mentorship that I’m now happily finishing my doctorate on French political thought at Cornell University. My cohort from MAPSS, along with Professor Markell, remain some of my closest colleagues. They still read my work, and we continue to see each other and collaborate at academic conferences.
