• How did you select your graduate school and how did it prepare you for your career?
• Work or internship experience during graduate school
• What was the most important or useful course you took in the MPA/MPP?
• Were you a Presidential Management Intern?
• What has been your career path since graduating? What do you want to be doing in 5 years?
• What is the most exciting and/or interesting aspect of your current job?
• Do you feel your MPA/MPP is helping you to “make a difference?” How?
• What advice, if any, would you give to an undergraduate thinking about going for an MPA/MPP?

How did you select your graduate school and how did it prepare you for your career?

> I looked for a state university with strong public affairs and education programs. Indiana University had the strongest combination in the country and a very reasonable tuition.

Any work or internship experience during graduate school?

> I interned for 10 weeks with the State Department at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala. I also interned for 10 weeks with the U.S. Agency for International Development at the Global Bureau in Washington, DC. 

What was the most important or useful course you took in the MPA/MPP?

> Program evaluation. Government uses program evaluation ceaselessly.

Were you a Presidential Management Intern?

> I am a PMI. I am currently a program officer at the U.S. Department of Education in the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program office. I monitor grants in New York and New England, provide technical assistance to state education agencies and local grantees in those states, and help run national evaluation activities. I will rotate for 6 months to USAID and work in the Asia/Near East Bureau.

What has been your career path since graduating? What do you want to be doing in 5 years?

> I graduated one year ago and am halfway through my PMI. I would like to supervise a qualified staff and an innovative project in 5 years. 

What is the most exciting and/or interesting aspect of your current job?

> Working with a variety of interesting people that range from local district teachers to high-level district and state officials. 

Do you feel your MPA/MPP is helping you to “make a difference?” How?

> Yes. How? My MPA allowed me to get a job that I could not have had without it. I will also advance quicker and higher than I would have without it. My MPA has given me technical expertise that allows me to understand and solve problems.

What advice, if any, would you give to an undergraduate thinking about going for an MPA/MPP?

> Go work or volunteer for at least 3 years first. Build experience. This will make you a much better graduate student; it will give you a better feel for what you want to study; it will allow you to save cash for grad school; it will help you get a better position after you graduate from grad school. Seriously consider a state school. Public and non-profit service generally does not pay very well. Big loans for private schools will weigh on you for years.