I attended the 2019 Princeton PPIA JSI with Abdul. He graciously wrote about his PPIA experience, which I share here.
By Abdul Sharif
After spending my second semester of junior year abroad in South Africa and Namibia, I flew to New Jersey to participate in the 2019 Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute (JSI) program at Princeton University. The seven-week program aims to prepare students from historically underrepresented, diverse backgrounds for graduate study and careers in public policy. Through rigorous, high-level academic courses, I got to experience how a master's degree in public policy can help me become a future public service leader. I connected to this opportunity through my university’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Graduate Opportunity (URGO).
As a participant, I took courses in writing, statistics, microeconomics and international relations, all of which play an important role within domestic public policy and international affairs. I was part of the international policy track which focused on the transatlantic partnership between the United States and the European Union. As part of the course, my classmates and I produced a joint report on the trans-Atlantic relationship between the United States and the EU. Specifically, I addressed the security partnership between the US and the EU. We had the opportunity to present our findings to senior State Department officials and academics in security and international affairs. This was the most crucial part of our course and concluded weeks of research. Furthermore, we had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to meet with policymakers and experts working in the U.S. Department of State and the Foreign Policy Institute of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Through this trip, I gained insight into the issues we analyzed in our course.
The highlight of the program for me was the relationships that I was able to develop with my fellow peers. It was affirming to be in the presence of a talented group of individuals from across the country and around the world who similarly were passionate about making change in their communities and globally.
Even outside the classroom, we engaged in challenging and informative conversations that helped create a collective learning environment. We were 29 fellows, each representing various majors and career interests. Whether it was spending long nights studying for an economics exam or walking to Wawa to grab a snack at midnight, these memories are what I cherish most.
"I have also been challenged academically and intellectually in ways I never thought possible. In any given week, I was balancing a combination of problem sets, quizzes, policy memos and readings. However, each of my instructors, as well as the Princeton staff, were always there to support us by holding daily office hours and providing individualized feedback. Learning new concepts such as STATA is never easy but having support from faculty and fellow classmates made the experience deeply collaborative."
These courses also taught me the importance of understanding statistics and the quantitative side of policy. I realized how, in many ways, statistics can be misused to form policies that negatively harm diverse communities. That's why it's essential for people who understand and live in their communities to be at the center of policymaking.
Another challenging aspect for me was transitioning back into the U.S. after being abroad for almost a year. I spent my fall semester in Tanzania and participated in the Center for Global Education and Experiences’ Southern Africa program. Both programs were heavily experiential. We traveled to new sites and met speakers almost every week, so I felt anxious about returning to a traditional learning system in the U.S. Luckily, several other students were also returning from their time abroad in the JSI program. That support from my peers was crucial to my first few weeks of readjusting back into the U.S. Moreover, upon my return, I felt inspired to become more involved in global issues and pursue more social justice work. Overall, my opportunities abroad supported my ability to analyze foreign and international affairs and helped me effectively contribute to JSI since I was in the international relations track.
"In addition to coursework and the workshops, we also had a faculty and policymakers lunch series, which gave us a chance to speak with high-level professionals at Princeton University and gain advice from their experiences in the field. I particularly enjoyed hearing from Matthew Desmond, author of Evicted. I recalled reading his book during my sophomore sociology class. At the lunch series, he discussed how evictions really can lead to a downward spiral that is almost impossible to escape from for poor communities. After his talk, I introduced myself and told him how much his book opened eyes to the housing crisis we are facing as a country. The PPIA program helped me realize that a career in public policy is possible and attainable."
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