By Wei Wang, MSFS’14
First-year MSFS students are now more than halfway done with their first semester, so it’s time for students to make an important decision regarding which MSFS concentration to pursue.
MSFS offers concentrations in three different fields of international affairs: international relations and security (IRS), international development (IDEV) and international commerce and business (ICB). Each of the concentrations includes a number of core and elective courses tailored to students’ various interests and provide skill training that can be useful in later in their career. MSFS students can pick one concentration.
To make sure students are well-informed in making this important decision, MSFS faculty offer many opportunities for students to learn about the different concentrations, from curriculum structures to career prospects. Each concentration held its own information sessions where prospective students could learn about the concentration’s mission, components and structure. Some second-year student representatives in the concentration also shared their experience and addressed first-year students’ questions.
As they learned more about the various options, the students were encouraged to meet concentration chairs and second-year students one-on-one for more insight and advice about their specific concerns and priorities. The targeted consultation helped students focus on what they really wanted to do.
As the deadline for declaring concentrations looms, first-year MSFSers are finally coming to the end of the decision-making process. Some students actually came to the program knowing which concentration they wanted to pursue and decided to stick with their original decision.
Virginia Schippers (‘14), an American first-year student, said that she wants to choose the IDEV concentration. Schippers wants to work in the private sector at a multinational firm after her experience working both in the UN and at an economic consulting firm. She also wants to promote sustainable economic growth in developing countries. However, choosing IDEV was not easy. After attending several information sessions, the strength of each concentration made it a difficult decision. In the end, compared to the other two concentrations, the IDEV curriculum stood out because the curriculum is best aligned with her career goals.
Like Schippers, Hossam Yaqob (‘14), an Iraqi-American student, has also identified his concentration choice. As a former US State Department employee in Iraq, he has a strong background in program management and civil engineering in post-conflict zones. Even though his work experience is primarily development-related, he plans to choose the IRS concentration because he believes IRS will give him more tools and flexibility in becoming a foreign service official after graduation.
The desire to change career paths plays a central role in Andrea Montano’s (‘14) decision making. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in international development, with a minor in Asian studies. However, her past work experience made her realize that she was more interested in security and international relations. She believes that pursuing the IRS concentration will allow her to use her academic strengths to build a career she wants.
Paloma Lopez Diez (‘14), a student from Spain who worked in the World Bank as a program staff member, is planning on choosing the ICB concentration. Like many of the other MSFS students, the main driving force behind her decision are her career goals. She realizes that her career goals require a strong academic background in finance, and ICB offers extensive core and elective courses in this field.
Even though students have to choose one specific concentration, they are still offered other options to pursue their wide range of academic interests, such as the dual degree programs and certificates in other programs. For instance, Schippers is considering the MSFS/MBA dual degree program for a combination of IDEV and business, which may give her an advantage in finding jobs in the private sector. For prospective IRS or IDEV concentrators, a certificate in international business is also an optional supplement.
For MSFS students, the primary concern in choosing a concentration is the ability to learn skills and information that will allow them to pursue their careers and obtain their goals. Although students choose different career paths, they are heading in the same direction toward a successful and fulfilling future.