Alumni Today IRD

Yomaira joined the American Graduate School in Paris after what had already been a very international experience that had taken her from her native Dominican Republic to the US.

After doing the last part of her secondary education in the US she completed her Bachelor’s degree at the College of Holy Cross in Massachusetts, where she double-majored in History and Spanish Literature with a Concentration on Latin American and Caribbean Studies.

On the very day of her graduation she decided to move to Texas, where she worked for two years as a high school instructor, teaching Spanish literature to native Spanish speakers in Texas. “I always knew that I wanted to do something related to International Relations and work with immigrants. I wanted to change lives. Teaching to immigrant populations was one way to do it, but I ended up finding myself limited in what I could do. I made sure to focus my classes on topics revolving around human rights, immigration, and politics, but that wasn’t enough. I wanted to do something bigger.”

Yomaira first considered law school to become an immigration lawyer, but she ended up opting for diplomacy as a way to have a positive impact on people’s lives on an even larger scale. “I looked up ‘how to become a diplomat’ and found AGS. I sought advice from a career diplomat who said that Paris would be an ideal location for the study of Diplomacy. In addition I liked that AGS allowed me to combine diplomacy with the more theoretical foundations of international relations, at the same time as learning French and being in an international learning environment.” So she enrolled in the Master’s program in International Relations and Diplomacy in 2016 and moved to Paris.

“The program was very challenging. It was hard at the beginning as everything was new for me as to how the international arena works. One thing that helped me is that I was able to freely share my opinions during class discussions: that was a good way to connect things that I experienced with the bigger picture, and to build my knowledge from that. One of the biggest takeaways I got from the program is the understanding that no topic is too narrow or completely disconnected from International Relations.”

During the second year at AGS Yomaira interned at UNESCO, at the Permanent Delegation of the Dominican Republic. There she worked directly with the Cultural advisor to the Ambassador, completing research and writing reports on global issues such as girls’ education, inequality and poverty. She also worked closely with the Ministry of Culture in the Dominican Republic, and performed outreach to advertise the Juan Bosch Prize for the Promotion of Social Science Research in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Yomaira went on to do a second internship in another Paris-based international organization, this time at the OECD, where her tasks involve event planning and organization through a partner association. “I sent my CV through an AGS alumna and received an answer within a day. The main two recommendations that I would like to give are: don’t hesitate to use your school network, and work hard on optimizing your CV – it does make a difference.”

Yomaira used this position within OECD to explore ways and areas in which she could connect her field of interest, which is Latin American and Carribean studies, with the work of the organization. And this was a successful endeavor, as she is now working at the Secretary General’s Global Relations division for the Latin American and the Caribbean region. “My work mainly focuses on following up on the economic and political developments of Latin American countries, including the Dominican Republic, supporting the team in its mission to maintain the bilateral relations between the organization and the region. The job is absolutely made for my skills. I’m definitely a people’s person and this is one of the few places at the OECD where you need to be connected to everybody.”

"My educational journey is full of adventures and stories that led me from my native Rwanda to Zimbabwe, to England, South Korea, and finally France, where I am completing my Ph.D. in International Relations and Diplomacy at the American Graduate School in Paris.

After studying philosophy and humanities at an undergraduate level in Zimbabwe and moral and political philosophy at a postgraduate level in England, in 2014 I obtained a scholarship from the government of South Korea to study toward a doctorate in International Politics at Dongguk University. At the same time, I got a scholarship from the Turkish Government but had to decline it in favour of the scholarship in South Korea. Prior to attending Dongguk I learned Korean language and reached level 3, which was required for a candidate to keep the scholarlship.

I started my Ph.D. in September 2015. At the same time I was working intensively on what would be my first novel, while also doing part time jobs in Yongin – a city outside Seoul, and working as an assistant to aprofessor in the department of political science at Dongguk.

I got married just after my first semester in January 2016. Since my wife was living in France, it became difficult for me to make journeys from South Korea to France, so I started the process of transferring to France. This is what led me to join the American Graduate School in Paris. AGS reminded me of the two colleges where I studied in Zimbabwe and England for they were quite small, as I told the late AGS president on my first day at AGS during registration.

The program in International Relations and Diplomacy at AGS was enriching for me. As someone who comes from a country that suffered the worst conflict of the 20^th Century in the 1994 genocide, I learnt a lot from the Strategy and Conflict Resolution course. I hope I will be able to assist societies in Africa in the process of peacebuilding and peacemaking.

The topic of my dissertation is “The Effect of Foreign Aid on Democratization in Rwanda.” From 1990 onwards, the third wave of democracy swept across Africa and many autocratic African nations embraced multi-party democracy. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, socialism that had been the inspiration and locomotive of many one-party African nations since independence was almost dead and aid that came with alignment with the Soviet Union ceased. Consequently, those African countries that wanted to receive aid from the West were encouraged if not obliged to embrace liberal democratic principles. A kind of systematic democracy promotion/assistance from the West took place in Africa. This way of promoting democracy by 'stick and carrot' makes us wonder whether since 1990 African countries – at least those that have been receiving large amounts of aid – have become more democratic. Rwanda is one of those African countries that has embraced multiparty democracy since the early 1990s. The dissertation measures the process of democratization in Rwanda through a series of questions and answers on many aspects of democracy like the electoral process, rule of law, human rights to mention but a few. The question that remains is whether Rwanda’s democratization has proportionally moved with the amount of aid that the country has received over the years.

All while pursuing my Ph.D., working at a full time job, getting married and raising a child, I followed my passion for writing and published two books. The first seeds of my writing ambitions were sown in Zimbabwe especially during the courses called African literature and World literature. In the two courses, we discovered writings of Shakespeare, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, and Wole Soyinka, among others. After completing my master’s degree in the UK, I went back to Zimbabwe to the school where I did my bachelor’s degree to teach philosophy and African literature in French. I loved literature stories so much that I started writing my own stories in 2012. In 2016, I published my first novel, A Father to my Siblings (Partridge Africa). It was such a joy to hold a copy of my book and to see it in the library of my university. When I published my first book I was a doctoral student in South Korea at Dongguk University. That same year, I started working on my second novel, which was published last January under the title Birth of Another Heroine (Authorhouse UK). It tells the story of a woman who, after miraculously surviving the genocide against the Tutsi in which her family was exterminated, resiliently fights the odds and lives on to carry out her ambition: to transform her nation.

The heroine of my novel represents a generation of Rwandans that were born during the genocide and have inspired me to pursue my own ambitions. I would love to work in Non-Governmental Organizations that foster well-being and promote peaceful international relations among nations. I hope I will be able to assist my native Rwanda to sustain the development it has achieved in the past two decades and to build peace and move toward more democratization – a democratization not necessarily 'a la West'. During my time in Zimbabwe, I loved lecturing and hope to have an opportunity to do it again in the future as another way to be an agent of change."

My name is Emirjona Cake and I am a recent PhD candidate at the American Graduate School in Paris. Most of my research and focus has revolved around Middle East state-building, particularly in relation to Sykes-Picot and the current upheavals in Iraq and Syria. I joined AGS because I was looking for a program that incorporates International Relations with a new life in a new city, and I found that at AGS. I felt like I was genuinely part of a larger family, and that helped me grow into a better student and person than I initially came in as. I was pushed by my mentors and my advisor to enhance my research skills and knowledge in all aspects of international relations, forcing me out of my comfort zone and preparing me for real-world experience dealing with differing opinions and opposing views.

Currently, I am working on a project with Homeland Security based out of New York City, designing and implementing a training program for citizen preparedness in case of a terrorist attack. The position itself involves high-level interaction with policy makers and developing new methods of emergency response to protect the city of New York and its habitants.

Before this post, I worked at UNESCO based in Paris, juggling Emergency Preparedness and Response for Culture in Syria and Iraq as well as helping to promote education for girls and women though tender projects. Since attending AGS, I also began a consulting firm with another AGS student, a recent graduate, who I consider one of my closest friends. We deal with numerous topics including counter-terrorism, public health, as well as mental health issues and integration.

All of these positions are extremely different from one another but they all have the underlying theme of helping society to make it safer and better for the future. This converges with AGS's spirit, which to be very forward-thinking, looking towards creating a better future.

My career goals are still centered on diplomacy and peacebuilding in fringe groups and communities facing identity and safety issues, working towards equality through human rights activism, giving a voice to the voiceless, and ensuring the security of all individuals. I would love to return to Paris to focus on my side projects more in the near future, particularly that of refugee integration into EU society.

After making it into the Ph.D. candidacy at AGS, I realized that if you are not doing what you love, then it is not worth doing. The common goal in all of my posts has been my love for humanity and what we are capable of, especially in times of difficulty. AGS helped me grow, both professionally and personally, into someone I really enjoy. They gave me just enough confidence to excel in any position I want.

I grew up in a middle-class suburban home in the northern suburbs of Sydney, Australia. With dozens of interests but no specific career goal at the time I enrolled to study economics and finance at Western Sydney University, earning my Bachelor degree in 1996. The degree included a one-year exchange program at the State University of New York. I returned a year later on a Mountbatten Internship program, which included sponsorship by global financial services firm American Express (Amex). I worked for twelve months as a Legal Compliance Officer, focusing on anti-money laundering initiatives for the bank, which I found fascinating.

I met my soon-to-be native-French wife during that year abroad and in order to facilitate a way for us to be together we hurriedly researched postgraduate study options in Europe. Ultimately the remit was pretty simple: identify a university in France that would accept a young Australian bloke with absolutely no foreign language skills. Thankfully AGS had recently kicked off operations at its rue de Lübeck premises. After some helpful telephone conversations with the former President Dr. John Lee I was enrolled in the combined MA-PhD program and was on my way to France. I was always enthralled by our world, and in particular the politics and machinations between nation-states. Thus, international relations and diplomacy was a sound choice for a postgraduate degree.

I enjoyed every waking minute of my time at AGS, the small class sizes, insightful professors and a well-rounded family environment. Joyce Lee was like our second mum and kept us all under control! My self-confidence soared in such a vibrant and supporting environment. I interned as an English teacher at a medium-sized university in Ekaterinburg, Russia at the crossroads (indeed border) between Asia and Europe. I also interned at the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) thanks to a connection fostered by a fellow AGS student, Peter Wolczik who is still a close friend today! Indeed, to work at the United Nations in some capacity was a lifelong goal of mine derived at a young age!

I wrote about sustainable consumption and production for my PhD dissertation. Some key components of my research have been published and other elements have been incorporated into UN reports and other publications. I wrote about sustainable consumption for journals, magazines and book chapters. I ventured back to UNEP several years later as a Programme Officer travelling the world training government officials from developing countries about sustainable consumption policy tools.

Since completing my dissertation, I have worked in a range of high profile roles at the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and Essential Energy - a major government utility business. At AusAID, I managed the Afghanistan overseas aid program during the height of global hostilities, which was both stressful and mightily exhilarating. I also worked on the AusAID Africa aid program desk and managed corporate services functions including internal audit and corporate planning. 

Today, I work myself. I have recently launched Bentley Editing (www.bentleyediting.com). I offer high quality proofreading and editing services to governments, businesses, students and writers around the world. Writing and editing high quality material has been the cornerstone of my professional career. Hence I felt that it was merely a natural progression to bring together my experience in editing publications and a desire to help other people into a small boutique editing and proofreading business.

Life has certainly thrown our family some curve balls. What meaningful life has not. However, to be honest, my years at AGS in Paris helped cultivate a resilience and self-confidence that has helped sustain me professionally and personally over the past fifteen years.

I am still married to that young French lady from western France. We now have three brilliant boys together who all excel at something or other.

Contact: info@bentleyediting.com

Fazola Nasretdinova (M.A., Class of 2017) has been accepted to present her AGS Master’s research at two upcoming conferences: the “Tenth International Conference on Climate Change: Impacts and Responses”, to be held at the University of Berkeley, United States on April 20-21, 2018, and the “Eleventh Global Studies Conference”, to be held at the University of Granada, Spain on July 30-31, 2018.

Fazolat’s thesis, on which her paper is based, is entitled “The Arctic Region: From Confrontation to Long-Term Cooperation. A Case Study of Russia and Western Arctic Nations”, and was successfully defended in May 2017 in Paris, before a jury comprised or her advisor Dr. Ruchi Anand, along with H.E. Lawrence Cannon, then Ambassador of Canada to France, and AGS Professor Steve McGiffen, who specializes in environmental issues.

This research provides an in-depth analysis of the policies and prospects for cooperation between Russia and the Western Arctic nations in the Arctic region, which has received increased global interest due to its natural resources and geopolitical implications. Current relations between Western Arctic nations and Russia may be characterized as tense and non-cooperative, with no single structure for cooperation that might unify their interests. In addition, due to the political context and disagreements regarding Russian foreign policy, the Western Arctic nations boycott Russia and prevent cooperation, which recalls some aspects of the Cold War period, cultivating misperceptions and eroding trust between the West and Russia.  In her thesis and paper, Fazolat asks whether, in that context, cooperation is possible, and whether it is desirable.

Read Fazola's Alumni Story published on the AGS website in July 2016

After finishing my undergraduate studies in Germany I did internships with a member of the European Parliament in Brussels, the regional representation of the European Commission in Bonn and a member of the German Parliament in Berlin. I had already been interested in political sciences in general, with a particular interest in international politics, and it became clear to me quite quickly that I wanted to do a master’s degree in International Relations.

It was by chance that I learned about the American Graduate School in Paris and since I had studied French in high school in Germany, the dual master’s program from AGS and Université Paris-Sud was the perfect fit for me. Apart from the interesting academic program that AGS was offering, I loved the idea of studying international relations in a truly international environment and being able to further improve both my English and French language skills.

I very much enjoyed my studying experience at AGS. The classes were small, which I was absolutely not used to, as typical university lectures at a German university often comprise several hundred people. The professors at AGS were always available to answer questions and further elaborate on specific topics, which made the two years at AGS an intense but rewarding studying experience. My time at AGS and in Paris was incredibly life-enriching and I’m glad that I got the opportunity to study abroad and make a lot of wonderful friends.

After finishing my master’s degree in June 2012, I stayed in Paris a little longer to do an internship at the European Union Institute for Security Studies and to occupy a few temporary jobs, one of which was a maternity leave cover as Academic Coordinator at AGS. In total, I spent three and a half wonderful years in Paris.

In November 2013 I moved to Berlin to work for a member of the German parliament as a research associate and political adviser. He is a member of the finance committee and I was working as research associate to support him and to prepare his work for the finance committee. This meant being always up-to-date with current affairs at the national as well as European level regarding economic and financial policy, preparing documents and presentations, writing speeches to be given at the German parliament as well as meeting with representatives from the financial sector. I very much enjoyed this job because it gave me the opportunity to indirectly participate in the legislation process and to be very close to where German politics happen.

With the legislative term of the German parliament coming to an end in September 2017, I changed positions and started working as Vice-President for Government Relations for the German Derivatives Association, the industry representative body for the 15 leading issuers of structured financial products in Germany. I’m responsible for their political communication and the monitoring of the legislative processes in Germany and at the EU level. In addition, I’m monitoring several tax issues regarding structured products that are important for our member banks as well as private investors.

Doing my master’s program at AGS has been very beneficial for my career and professional advancement. Studying abroad and putting yourself in an unfamiliar environment is always a challenge and allows you to grow and develop. In addition to gaining a degree in International Relations and a French degree in Strategic Negotiations I was able to improve my language, communication and intercultural skills and get a more diversified perspective on political and societal issues. 

"As a Nigerian, my motivation to study International Relations was a desire to find solutions to the intricate problems of my country and contribute to its development and good governance. I moved to Paris to pursue this goal, obtaining a BA in International Economics at the American University of Paris before attending the American Graduate School in Paris. I opted for the full spectrum of AGS’s academic programmes, graduating with a Double Masters in International Relations and Diplomacy, and Strategic Negotiation in collaboration with the Université de Paris Sud, as well as the LL.M Programme at the University of Cergy Pontoise.

I enjoyed my time at AGS, not only because of the quality of teaching, the richness of knowledge received and the rigor of the work for each class, but also because of the caliber of students that I met from all over the world and the discussions we had in class about various political issues. It enriched and expanded my ideas about politics, development and diplomacy and prepared me for a career in International Relations.

Since graduating from AGS, I have been working with the Nigerian government at its Permanent Delegation to UNESCO, here in Paris. It has been a great opportunity for me to realize my goals to contribute to development in Nigeria. The Nigerian Delegation acts as a mediator between the Nigerian government and UNESCO and facilitates collaboration on various programmes and projects and the sharing of best policy practices in Education, Science, Culture, and Communication and Information. I had the opportunity to intern with the Delegation twice, while I was a student at AGS. Once I graduated they offered me a position as Programme / Administrative Assistant.

My time at AGS definitely prepared me for the diversity of tasks, initiatives and projects I tackle every day in my current position as Senior Administrative Officer at the Nigerian Delegation. It gave me the intellectual flexibility to take on any assignment in the various programme sectors of UNESCO. Each day on the job is different, with a plethora of missions ranging from research and contributions to reports and policy briefings on various matters, advising the Nigerian government, as well as planning meetings and events to showcase Nigeria’s art, food, and culture, in UNESCO."

Megan Pritchard started her academic journey in the State of Washington, studying Foreign Affairs and French at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma with the overall goal of working for the US State Department as a Foreign Service officer. She then spent a couple of years living in France as a study abroad student and an au pair.

Joining the American Graduate School in Paris was the natural next step toward her career goal. “Paris is such a great place to study International Relations. Not only is AGS located in central Paris, it is not very far from international organizations such as the OECD, UNEP or UNESCO. My courses from AGS as well as from the dual Master’s degree program at Sceaux have taught me valuable skills that will undoubtedly help me in the future as I pursue my dream of working in the Foreign Service.”

After graduating from AGS last summer, Megan got married with a Frenchman, and has decided to prolong her stay in Paris to acquire additional international experience before returning to the US. She first completed a six-month internship as a project manager for a Paris-based web agency, where she was able to apply her multilingual and multicultural skills. She now works for an international law firm that is also headquartered in Paris.

 “While I am preparing to work for the State Department, I am enjoying living in Paris and gaining valuable career experience in an international legal environment. For my current job I rely a lot on what I learned in Professor Bismuth’s International Law course, which offered a great overview of international law and gave me a very solid foundation upon which I have been able to quickly understand other facets of the law for my job. Additionally, I have been able to apply the research and writing skills that I honed during my thesis process under the rigorous tutelage of professors such as Dr Yates and Dr Anand.”

“Upon graduating with my Master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from the American Graduate School in Paris, I joined the AmeriCorps national service, where I served as a Language Acquisition Aide in Washington, D.C., working with recently migrated students. I was specifically placed to work with migrated populations because of my international background and language knowledge. After completing my service year, I stayed on as an employee of the District of Columbia public school system.

My work consists in providing educational and socio-emotional support for recently migrated students in the International Academy of a high school. Immigrant students face a litany of challenges that include interrupted education, family reunification, long work schedules, language attainment, immigration stress, and fear due to America’s political climate. Every student has a different life experience and these challenges affect how they are able to function in school. My job is to get to know their specific challenges, learn what their goals are, and to help fill in the educational gaps. I would have never considered a position like this before, but I now realize that this is an invaluable experience that I will be able to apply to a career in research, policy, or journalism.

Prior to applying to the AGS Master’s program, I double-majored in Sociology and Media Studies and minored in Philosophy. I applied to AGS because I wanted the experience of living in a new culture in addition to the degree. My experience at AGS informs the work that I do with my students every day. I am able to understand the economic and political struggles of the places they come from; the issue of educational attainment for migrated students is a growing global one. Furthermore, I look at their situations through a student’s lens. When I have questions, I look for the answers in literature. This perspective has helped me turn my current position into an educational opportunity.

A few weeks ago, a female student from Central America asked me what the highest level of education I have is. She was shocked when I told her that I received my Master’s Degree. “Miss!” she said, “You can’t tell what someone knows just by looking at them. Man, woman, skin, clothes–you don’t know.” That was the proudest I had felt since completing my degree. Not because I have a piece of paper that somehow makes me more specialized than the person next to me, but because I may have chipped away at an unrealized stereotype and brought the idea of educational attainment a little bit closer to her.

It would be an absolute lie to say that I know what my next step is or what my exact career will be. However, I can say that I am in a great place to move forward because of my time spent at AGS. My degree is and will be put to good use as I continue in this direction. If I’ve learned anything while in Paris, it is that the world is a lot bigger than you can ever imagine.”

“I joined AGS largely to build an education platform to help make positive changes in the world. The motivations have not changed, but I am no longer naive to the difficulties of fostering change and the many forces that fight progressive reforms. In my career, I have done my best to remain politically agnostic while fostering programs or policy that can be mutually beneficial to all parties.”

Jay Wagamon joined AGS after earning a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism at West Virginia University. Since he graduated with his Master’s of International Relations and Diplomacy in 2006, Jay Wagamon has pursued an international career that took him from counterterrorism and intelligence analysis to strategic and organizational consulting.

Beginning in 2006, Wagamon served as a senior counterterrorism analyst providing expertise on terrorist tactics, techniques and procedures to the Department of Homeland Security in the US. In this capacity, he utilized all-source intelligence to produce over 90 TRIPwire profiles focused on international and domestic terrorist incidents, target selection, and operational tactics that serve as reference materials for several federal and local agencies. In addition, Wagamon led an outreach campaign that coordinated Improvised Explosive Device (IED) prevention between Federal, State and local law enforcement.

Wagamon went on to work as an intelligence analyst, conducting research and analysis with a detailed knowledge of numerous regions and actors. Wagamon conducted all-source analysis and generated intelligence products to evaluate and respond to influence operations orchestrated by foreign adversaries affecting U.S. national security interests. In supporting the Defense Intelligence Agency Foreign Influence Effort (FIA), Wagamon contributed to foreign influence assessments of multiple countries, cyber threats and transnational terrorism.

Wagamon then worked as a Project Manager engaged in a border protection project destined to meet future network backhaul requirements for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). He has also held several different Business Development positions that have led him to an intimate understanding of Federal contracting and government concepts, practices and procedures. This led him into the head of Corporate Strategy for Serco’s Americas business.

Today, Jay Wagamon serves as Chief Operations Officer for Hayes Group International (HGI), a global security and intelligence consulting and advisory firm specializing in emerging and frontier markets. HGI is focused on development of solutions involving security, cultural intelligence, and delivering comprehensive risk assessment and mitigation services. HGI takes a unique approach to challenges and provides solutions that focus on the other side of the equation, especially those that can improve outcomes for women in conflict zones. Wagamon is responsible for operations as well as defining the strategic direction of HGI in the US intelligence and security markets focused on conflict zones.

“My experience at AGS was fantastic both academically and personally. The teaching staff are highly intelligent and deeply knowledgeable in their fields. The immersion in French culture also had a vast and dynamic change on my worldview and, I believe, gave me an advantage over my peers that studied International Relations and Diplomacy in the US. I traveled extensively throughout Europe, gaining valuable cultural and regional experience. I highly value the academic and cultural lessons learned while studying in Paris, and the great relationships with my classmates that continue to this day.”