MA in Global Affairs

Cody Mattern, 2020

What have you been up to since graduating from the Global Affairs MA program?

Since graduating from the Global Affairs MA Program, I have continued my work as an Employment Specialist at the International Rescue Committee wherein I work to support refugees and asylees entering the United States with starting their first job in America. I have endeavored to support these vulnerable individuals as capably as I can regardless of the numerous complications being faced by that community during the current situation, and I have been trying my darnedest to adjust to remote work like many of us during these times.

Is there a course, text, or assignment that you have drawn upon in your graduate life?

Nothing comes specifically to mind, but the Global Affairs MA Program as a whole engendered in me an increased appreciation for diversity and cultural variance that I find particularly valuable in my day-to-day life.

Please describe one memory or highlight of your time in the program.

A highlight of my time in the Global Affairs MA Program was definitely the trip I took to Cuba as part of the GLOA 710 class; it was an opportunity I would never have had otherwise, and the unique vibrancy of the Cuban culture and people and the friendships I established and reinforced with my colleagues were, to me, wonderful things.

What would be your advice to new graduates, regardless of whether they are already in established careers or are in search of a job?

My advice to new graduates would be to never give up and to constantly pursue new opportunities; even if it feels like you're in a slump or a rut now, any period of your lived experience can be a transitional period, and it only takes one day to change your entire life.