Undergraduate Institution: New College of Florida
Undergraduate Major: History/International Area Studies
MAPSS Graduation Year: 2010
I came to MAPSS to study history and international relations. I divided my courses between the two fields and by the winter term I realized my interests were more aligned with international relations. This led me pursue my MA thesis with Dr. Michael Reese, a scholar of international relations and security. I wrote my thesis under his careful tutelage and examined both the causes of the First Gulf War and how it could have been prevented. After my MAPSS degree, I worked briefly on a political campaign before completing a two-year stint with Teach for America. I taught high school social studies in inner-city Baltimore while concurrently working on a Master’s degree in Urban Education from the Johns Hopkins University. I then decided to pursue my doctoral studies in political science and received a fully-funded offer to do so at the University of Florida. I am in the midst of my doctoral studies at University of Florida and am studying international relations and security. This academic interest dates back to my experience at the University of Chicago. MAPSS helped me clarify my academic interests and achieve my goals because of the sustained commitment and support I received during and after my time at Chicago.
