Ana Guerrero MIA ’19 gave a micro view of the SIPA D.C. Career Conference; check out the video below for a macro view. More than 220 SIPA students took part this year, joined by over 200 SIPA alumni throughout the Conference’s panels, site visits, and networking events from January 16-18, 2019.
SIPA’s 43rd Annual D.C. Career Conference & Alumni/Student Networking Reception was held on January 16 – 18, 2019.
My name is Ana Guerrero, and I am a second-year MIA student, concentrating in International Security Policy and specializing in International Conflict Resolution. I am originally from the Dominican Republic but I grew up in Brooklyn. I had a myriad of jobs before SIPA, and I am hoping to use my degree to pivot into the Security sector.
For that reason, I was really looking forward to the 43rd annual SIPA D.C. Career Conference, so much so that I successfully applied to be the panel coordinator for the Security & Political Risk session. (I couldn’t attend last year because a group of classmates and I organized a relief trip to Puerto Rico to help clean up after Hurricane Maria.) Needless to say, for someone who doesn’t have direct work experience in the field, I felt that I couldn’t miss the D.C. Career Conference *Don Corleone voice* on this the year of my graduation.
I am very glad I made the most of my time at the conference. I had two coffee chats with SIPA alumnae in D.C., and I managed to make a connection with each of my panelists. My favorite panel – aside from my own – was the Foreign and Civil Service session, where we heard from people from the State Department, the FBI, and a former CIA employee. Their insights into government work and the fellowships to apply for were invaluable.
Panels aside, the site visits are another excellent resource because I got to see the workplace and talk to people I otherwise would not have met if I just attended the conference day’s events. I went to the National Counterterrorism Center, Elizabeth Warren’s Senate office, Albright Stonebridge Group (ASG), and led the site visit and panel of State Department employees. At the ASG session, a human resources representative talked about internship and employment opportunities to look out for in the coming months. Additionally, the networking reception on the last night allowed me to follow up on connections I had made throughout the week. THIS is why you attend a conference like this!
My one piece of advice to prospective students is to absolutely attend the SIPA D.C. Career Conference if they are open to working in Washington D.C. And if you want to work in D.C. and can attend both years as a SIPA student, do it!
The SIPA Office of Career Services hosted SIPA´s 39th Annual Washington, D.C. Career Conference from January 13 – 15. SIPA alumni and other professionals based in the Washington, D.C. area participated in the conference, which introduced attendees to the capital and informed them of employment opportunities. This three-day event consisted of 16 career panels, various employer site visits, an alumni/student networking reception, and a day for informational interviews with alumni.
Pablo Bejar (PEPM ’15) attended the event. Pablo attained his Masters in Business Administration with an emphasis in Economics from California State University, where he graduated with honors and published his thesis on Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance.
Here, Pablo offers his reflections on the conference and its professional value for PEPM students.
Happy Friday! SIPA students are finishing their semester. Finals are around the corner and then many will go home for the holidays, some will attend the Annual DC Career Conference, while others may travel and begin work on their capstone projects. The halls may be quieter without the chatter of faculty and students but our Admissions Office will remain busy as we begin to match documents to applications. The deadline for fall 2012 admission consideration for our MIA, MPA, and MPA-DP programs is quickly approaching. The application and all required documents must be submitted to our office by January 5th, 2012… a little less than a month away.
The sooner an application is submitted, the better. Once an application is submitted and the fee is paid we print the application and start a file in our office. This will allow us to track documents associated with each application. Applicants can then view the documents received by logging in to the application site. The tracking process does not begin until an application is submitted. Submitting your application well before the deadline will ensure that we have the most time possible to communicate with you and can start reviewing files soon after the January 5th deadline.
If you have questions about the program or about your application, please contact our office at +1.212.854.6216 or at [email protected].
"The most global public policy school, where an international community of students and faculty address world challenges."
—Merit E. Janow, Dean, SIPA, Professor of Practice, International and Economic Law and International Affairs
