In This Story
In early November, Schar School of Policy and Government students from the Pillars of Research, Upper-Level Democracy Lab, First-Year Democracy Lab, and International Relations Task Force Learning Communities visited the World Bank headquarters in Washington D.C.
After a tour of the building, students participated in a panel discussion with George Mason University alums Amy Melki, external affairs officer; Kyung Min Lee, economist; and Filip Jolevski, economist.
Afsana Ahmadi, a sophomore government and international politics major and a member of the Pillars of Research Learning Community, appreciated that the panelists shared not only their professional expertise, but also their personal journeys and the motivations that drive their work.
For Daniela Lopez Brenes, a senior exchange student from Erasmus University Rotterdam and a member of the PRLC, visiting the World Bank and talking with the alums brought to life a key reference point in her studies.
“It was really impressive to actually see where things happen,” she said. “Being able to have a more human perspective of the World Bank and [the alum’s] work really opened a new perspective for me because now I feel like the bank is so much more than what you read in a report or a textbook or an article.”
Mariely Lopez-Santana, director of Pillars of Research, later led a conversation with economist Sylvan Herskowitz about his research work.
Emilee Duffy, assistant director of student engagement at the Schar School, accompanied the students and said they were excited to talk to alumni who were once in their shoes and now have these careers at the bank.
“They were just excited to see all the current opportunities there could be,” she said.
“Trips like this are important because they bring our studies to life,” Ahmadi said. “Hearing from people who are out there doing the work we read about adds a whole new level of understanding. Experiences like these not only teach us but also inspire us to think about our own paths and how we might contribute to solving these big challenges someday.”
The promise of the learning communities is that students get connected with people in the field that they want to work in, Duffy says.
“We are delivering on that promise,” she said. “They get to go into D.C. and see things they might not otherwise have access to. We show them what they can actually do with their degree. ‘Oh, this is an option for me. This is where I could work.’ It just makes their path a little clearer.”
If you are interested in being part of the Upper-Level Democracy Lab for the 2025-26 academic year, you must apply through the housing portal. The housing portal opens December 10, 2024, at 10 a.m. and closes February 2, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. The link for the housing portal can be found here.