This intersession the International Studies Program offered a three-day career program in Washington DC designed to advance students thinking of different career types in international affairs and improve career-building skills. The program was organized by the International Studies Program with the generous sponsorship of the Hopkins Career Center and the Aronson Center for International Studies.
Students with an interest in international affairs gained exposure to a wide range of career paths through a series of site visits and classroom discussions with accomplished mid-career professionals working in government, research, and international organizations.
Held January 23-25th, 2019, students made site visits to top DC based institutions to learn firsthand from accomplished professionals. They visited the Pentagon, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Senate, Facebook DC, The Cohen Group, and Akin Gump LLP. Guest speakers also discussed career fields related to the intelligence community, international economics, political campaigns, think tanks, non-profits, and international development.
The trip was led by alumni Joel Meyer ’04. He is currently Senior Vice President at Dataminr and previously served on the White House National Security Council and in the Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security.
Joel Meyer ’04 led the Career Trip 
Anya Schmemann Director Of Communications at the Council on Foreign Relations 
Dr. Giovanna Maria Dora Dore Fellow at SAIS and former World Bank employee 
Students wearing the Hopkins Tradition Scarfs 
Students listen to speaker on Career Trip Shaarik Zafar, Public Policy Manager at Facebook 
“I thought that the trip was a great opportunity for students to have a substantive look into the myriad of opportunities offered to people who want to work in international relations and government. The program was helpful in expanding the way in which I think about careers in government, and the sorts of jobs I would be interested in. The breadth of the work that the government does means that people can find their own niche, whether it be in crisis management in the Office of Transition Initiatives, or as a foreign policy expert for a Senator’s office, and without this program I would never have known about many of these incredible opportunities.
Divya Baron
It was a really eye opening 72 hours. More than anything, the trip, I believe, gave me the tools to get where I want to go with my career – the networking skills and the different steps in different career paths, all interesting in their own way. Joel was a phenomenal professor whose connections we all took great advantage of and that I hope to continue to foster as my own career develops.
Sam Schatmeyer