Posts in the Academics Category at Heller Admissions Blog

Category: Academics (page 1 of 9)

Reflections on my Letter to my Future Self

Ronunique Clark, MPP’23

Alexa, play Teyana Taylor’s “Made It”! Whew, where did the time go? Two years ago, I accepted my admission offer to attend Heller, and now I am sitting here two years later to tell you that I have completed all program requirements and will be graduating May 21st, 2023. I have written many, many, many blogs to you all before, but let’s take a trip down memory lane to my second blog post of my time here at admissions, “Letter to my Future Self”, and let’s respond back to little ole me from a year ago:

The time has final come! It is May 2023 and you were able to complete not one, but two degrees during a global pandemic. Cheers to that! Even when everyone thought you were crazy for going into a Master’s program 3 months after graduating from undergrad, you were able to overcome and prove them wrong. – Yessssss, cheers to that! 23 years old with two degrees. Yes, you did go back to back and you did the darn thing, even if you broke a sweat or two. You overcame every difficulty faced and proved everyone wrong!
Another exciting part is that not only have you gotten your Master of Public Policy, but your first best friend, Mom, is graduating at the same time with her bachelor’s degree. Please hold the tears for after the ceremonies. – After 20 years, my mom finally got her bachelor’s! I am extremely proud of her and it is unfortunate that our ceremonies ended up being a day a part from each other, so we are not attending hers. She has told me I am the one who inspired her to go back and get it done, but in reality she is and has always been the true inspiration and I would have not made it this far without her everlasting love and support. A lot of people doubted us, doubted our journey, doubted the outcomes, but here we are mother and daughter with degrees! 2023 is our year for sure!
You have gained all this incredible knowledge on how to combat social inequities, where do you go from here? I hope that you stuck with your dream of creating an initiative that will educate formerly incarcerated individuals in California on why voting matters, how to register to vote, and making sure that their votes are counted! Do you plan to go back home to the Bay Area to assist your community in the fight to end violence? Have you taken your gems elsewhere to another community in need? Are you helping the fight for access to adequate government programs? – Even though I have not kicked off my initiative, I know that it is never too late! But I am happy to say that I will be returning to the Bay Area this coming August with a offer to partake in the City and County of San Francisco Fellows program, working in the government public sector, which I have always loved. My biggest goal was to always bridge the gap and fight for access to adequate government programs and within the fellowship program, I will be able to continue this process. Massachusetts degreed me, but the Bay Area raised me, and being able to take my gems back to my community is truly the best part.
Do not forget to always be your best yourself in every situation. You have always been more than enough. I know you have not only impacted your own life, but others as well, which has and will always be your number one purpose in life. You were adaptable, strong, and resilient. I can not wait to see where and what you do in this next chapter. The price was high but the reward was greater. – I always admired how you always stayed true to yourself, no matter the situation or circumstance. You have shown endless resilience that maybe you sometimes felt wasn’t recognized. But even when you doubted the recognition, someone was always watching and appreciative. This program has showed you why you have always been more than enough and how your presences alone can fill a room. You prayed and manifested this next chapter: the reward was always greater than the price.

Thank you Heller for seeing my potential and trusting my skills that has led me to completing this program on time. Thank you to my cohort for showing up every day and inspiring me in more ways than I ever imagined. Thank you, Heller Admissions, for providing me with this opportunity to be able to share my story and insights to prospective students through emails, ambassador meetings, and the Heller Blog. Thank you to my family and friends for the continuous love and support as I navigated higher academia. So excited to become a Heller Alumna!

Neh Meh’s Favorite Class at Heller: Political Ecology and Development

April 27, 2023 / amandamiller / 0 Comments

Neh Meh, MA SID/COEX’24

As I write this, we are two weeks away from finishing the Spring semester. Some of us are graduating, while others still have a semester or a year to go. Congratulations in advance to all of those who are graduating this year!

I’ll be one of the students graduating this year, and as I reflected on my student experiences at Heller, I thought about my learning experience in Political Ecology and Development class a lot. The course has taught me to look beyond surface issues and zoom in on issues in a way that allows me to think deeply about them and to question them critically. It taught me to look at things through a political ecologist lens, which means always being critical of the resolutions to world problems. The course covers topics such as environmental crisis, indigenous rights, famine, neoliberalism, capital disaster, etc. These topics are all relevant issues in the present day, as they continue to pose threats to our society.

While the resolutions to these presented issues may seem obvious, I have discovered the need to dissect each of the layers contributing to each issue. For example, when we hear the word “environmental crisis”, we immediately think about the carbon emissions and forest degradation that contribute to the crisis. As a result, we are likely to blame the growth of the population and developing countries for it. While these are all valid concerns about contributing factors to the environmental crisis, we must question who is coming up with those notions of the environmental crisis, and who really is contributing to the environmental crisis. For example, we should ask, “Who really contributes to carbon emissions and waste ?” The class provided different case studies that show the power of elites and capitalists in framing the issues in such a way that tends to blame the vulnerable population from the Global South while maximizing profits.

For example, many scientists believe cutting down trees and farming harms the environment, and in turn, many conservation agendas displace the regions’ indigenous population, demean their culture, and leave them in a more vulnerable place. But in some conservation efforts happening in Africa, we can see that there’s a better alternative: villages who engage in agriculture have healthy forests growing surrounding the villages. Thus, cutting down trees for farming under certain circumstances can actually be a good thing. Indeed, it benefits the environment as it is multiplying the forest. The government and outsiders play a critical role in deciding what is “good” or “bad” for the environment while neglecting the expertise of the villagers who have been farming for many decades.

The learning techniques and critical thinking associated with studying issues beyond the surface level are crucial for the learning process. In addition, it prepares you to become a person aligned with social justice and engage in work that eliminates inequality. Therefore, I highly recommend you take this class, if you ever want to experience a course that constantly challenges you to think critically and prepares you to become a real problem solver in the injustice system.

Midterm Madness with Calah

April 18, 2023 / cmcquarters / 0 Comments

Calah McQuarters, MBA’23

Hello and happy Spring! Last week, Waltham weather decided to give us a quick tease of warmth before reverting back to the cold and rain. Seeing as winter is my favorite season, I am in no rush to get to summer. However, it was nice to experience a bit of sunshine.

Today, I am going to share about something I accomplished this semester that I feel proud of: I made it through midterm season! Now you may be thinking, “Calah… really? That’s the accomplishment you want to highlight?” And the answer is, YES! From March 1st to March 31st, I completed 4 papers, 2 slide decks, 1 accounting midterm test, a 3 year budget projection spreadsheet, ended a Module 1 class, and started a new Module 2 class, all while working 2 jobs, attending board meetings as a board fellow, and engaging in extracurricular activities. *cue applause*

March 2023 was no doubt the longest month of my academic career dating back to preschool. But we made it! And before we start to panic about finals, which literally begin next week, I want to take a moment and celebrate!

When you’re going grad school, oftentimes it can be hard to recognize growth. Waking up and doing almost the same thing every day tends to feel more like just going through the motions rather than frequent eureka moments. This is exponentially true during midterms. When you’re focused on meeting the next deadline, you can lose sight of the knowledge you’re gaining along the way. Sometimes it isn’t until you get to apply your new skills to tasks outside of the classroom that you really see the fruits of your labor. This leads me to the accomplishment I really want to highlight.

A couple of weeks ago, I was on a coordinating call for my job as a program manager at a local non profit. The team was discussing the need to hire a few new people and wanted to figure how changes in hours and pay may affect our long term budget. *Cue my moment to shine.* My boss asks me if I can work on doing some budget projections to figure out the best course of action. Now, had he asked me this in January, I probably would have been able to figure something out over multiple days and through some tears. But it just so happened that the next week I had a midterm due in financial management around budgeting out a new three year program for a non profit organization. So what may have taken me days in January really only took me an hour and a half in March because I had been learning and practicing everything I needed to know for the last two months. *sheds a tear of joy*

I cannot express how great it felt to be able to immediately apply what I was learning in class. Like I said, when your days are filled with reading, Powerpoints, and lectures, it can be difficult to see how all of the learning pieces come together, or how all the theoretical and hypothetical will translate to “the real world”. But that moment of realization was also the moment of reassurance I needed to boost me through the rest of the semester.

So! I made it through March, a little wiser and with the gray stress hairs to match. But I celebrate those hairs with joy. They’re the proof in the pudding. 😉 And with that I will bid you all adieu for now. Don’t forget to step outside, get some Vitamin D, and watch the flowers bloom during this lovely Spring season.

Spark Tank 2023

April 11, 2023 / amandamiller / 0 Comments

Whether you’re an MBA student or not, Heller offers a variety of ways to engage with social entrepreneurship, including competitions, workshops, and classes that give every student the opportunity to pursue a social venture, develop a plan, and get feedback from professionals. We’re currently less than a week out from one of my favorite of these events: SparkTank!

Next week, Brandeis is hosting their annual SparkTank event, a competition where students, faculty, and staff compete for a share of $50,000 in funding to turn their innovative ideas into viable businesses. The SparkTank event is part of the Brandeis Innovation Spark program, which is an experiential education program of the Innovation Center at Brandeis University. The program provides students with the opportunity to learn through doing by offering seed funding, mentorship, and a collaborative community to turn their innovative ideas into viable businesses. The program seeks to inspire students to think creatively about solutions for real-world problems.

Last year, five Heller student teams entered the weekend-long competition, and all received prizes. The community-driven aquaculture venture Sowing Seas, led by Beck Hayes, MBA/MA SID’22 and Ariel Wexler, MBA/MA SID’22, took first prize, and plant-based sustainable meal vendor Farmer Foodie, led by Alison Elliott, MBA/MA SID’22, shared second prize. Heller teams frequently do well in this competition, including winning more than $22,000 in combined prize money in 2018 and taking four of the top spots in 2020.

Participating in Brandeis’ SparkTank event is just one of many ways you can get involved and turn your innovative ideas into viable businesses: students can also participate in The Heller Startup Challenge, an intensive, three-day social enterprise initiative, open to Heller students as well as undergraduates and alumni. Participants form or join teams around an idea to solve a pressing social issue, develop a business plan with the help of a mentor, learn from peers with different skill sets and pitch their plan at the end of the weekend– and there’s a $1,000 prize!

Heller students can also compete for the Hult Prize at Brandeis. The Hult Prize is a year-long international student competition to sustainably solve the world’s most pressing social challenges offers a $1 million prize—but first, students have to win at their local college competition. The Hult Prize at Brandeis is the culmination of a semester full of entrepreneurship, offering students a chance to pitch ideas refined through feedback at previous events.

Whether you’re an MBA student or not, Heller students have the opportunity to explore how entrepreneurship has become a driving force in the social enterprise sector. I’m so excited to hear how the competing Heller teams do this year!

The Importance of Pivoting

March 30, 2023 / amendez / 0 Comments

Andy Mendez, MBA/SID’23

One of the many benefits of being a Heller student is the ability to take courses outside my academic area of focus. When building my course schedule for the first half of the current spring semester, I quickly decided that I wanted to take Women, Peacemaking & Peacebuilding taught by Boston Network for International Development (BNID)’s Executive Director, Nanako Tamaru. I already had a strong basis in gender studies since one of the focus areas of my work in the Peace Corps was gender development. Additionally, I had taken two courses focused on gender last fall. The Women, Peacemaking & Peacebuilding course caught my attention because it would allow me to build on my theoretical foundation in gender studies while also gaining a basis in conflict resolution and coexistence, a field in which I didn’t have much prior knowledge.

Our final assignment for the course was to write a 600-800 word OpEd on a contemporary issue relating to women, peace, and security. This assignment appealed to me because I wanted more practice writing for a generalist, public audience. The OpEd assignment challenged us to be persuasive rather than descriptive, with a clear call to action for the relevant stakeholders addressed in the opinion piece.

I was surprised to find that I struggled to identify the right topic for this assignment. I started out wanting to look at women in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and how women who were not mothers were being left out of the peacemaking process. I had only ever written about Central Asia once, in a paper that looked at economic development for internally displaced people in Azerbaijan. Last fall, I applied to (and am still waiting to hear back about) a Boren Fellowship to study Turkish in Azerbaijan, and figured this assignment would be a great way for me to learn more about the region. However, I quickly discovered just how little context I had. I realized I wouldn’t have enough time in a half-semester course to build the knowledge base I needed to cover this topic accurately and effectively.

For that reason, I decided to change my topic. I instead pivoted to looking at state and non-state violence against religious minorities in Egypt, where I had been a volunteer educator during the last two summers of my undergraduate career. Whereas I knew very little about my original topic, I knew a lot about this one. So much, in fact, that I found it really difficult to fit a discussion of this topic into the 800 word limit. I found myself taking a lot of time to explain the context around certain trends, which left me with very little room to present my stance. It was also hard to be very focused with my recommendations because there are so many interlacing pieces to this issue that an integrated approach is the only way to effectively address what’s happening.

Finally, I settled on writing about violence against women human rights defenders (WHRD) in Libya. Since North Africa is my region of professional interest, this topic allowed me to learn more about a country in the region that I had not previously engaged with. This topic also more directly addressed the parts of the prompt that called for an analysis of gender and conflict dynamics. While it was frustrating to change topics so many times (especially since I consider myself to be a very decisive person!), I am very glad that I acknowledged the shortcomings of my earlier topics and kept pivoting until I found the right one for this assignment.

In the immediate aftermath, this experience reminded me of the importance of trusting my gut and making necessary pivots (something we hear a lot about when discussing social enterprises in the MBA program). In the long-term, I already see ways in which this exercise will support my future career. As someone who is on track to be a policymaker in the federal government, the ability to communicate with a wide variety of stakeholders — including the general public — is an essential skill. Additionally, I recently started a role as a Foreign Policy Writer with Al Fusaic, an online platform that seeks to disrupt stereotypes about countries in North Africa and Southwest Asia, while facilitating cross-cultural connections. As a content writer, I will be publishing public-facing articles that highlight and demystify ongoing social, political, and economic developments in the region. For one of my first assignments, I will be repurposing this Op-Ed for Al Fusaic, which I’m pretty excited about! Until that’s published, you can read the initial version of my Op-Ed on the website Dispatches on War and Peace.

Surviving the Spring Semester

March 23, 2023 / bruscitti / 0 Comments

Brielle Ruscitti, MS GHPM/MA SID’24

The spring semester at the Heller School is an amazing time: the weather is starting to warm up, nature comes back alive, everyone is excited about summer opportunities, graduation, and starting a new chapter. However, all the new excitement and good weather brings its own set of new challenges. This spring, I have selected to take a wider range of course offerings and exploring some of my interests. I have found that in taking a wider range of course materials, it can be a bit harder to focus in on some of my readings and longer term assignments. I have also found it difficult to find a new balance of exploration and dedicating time to fine tuning my current skills, research and still searching for my summer practicum.

To combat these challenges, I first started setting time aside to be outside and enjoy nature. Spending time outside is a priority to me, so I make sure to carve time out of my day to enjoy nature as the seasons change, and go for a daily walk. I think getting outside is a great way to take time for yourself and listen to your favorite podcast, music, or audiobook, or call a friend or family member. I always have audiobook recommendations, so if you are ever looking for a good listen, feel free to reach out.

I rely heavily on my calendar and course syllabi to keep track of due dates and keep my time management accurate. I try to break up my day to make sure I am able to get tasks and assignments done during the morning, as this is when I focus best. Then, in the afternoons, I take time to work on things that I find interesting and are related to my elective courses. Additionally, as I’ve talked about in previous posts, I am searching for my summer practicum. I have been adding this into my weekly schedule by saving positions that I am interested in applying to, and setting aside time one or two days per week to submit my application and continue my search.

I have found that these tactics, and remembering to put my phone away, work for me and my preferences and work style. It’s important to take into account your own working style, habits and preferences, so these tips might not work for everyone. My best suggestion is to try and find a balance that works for you, your priorities, and your interests!

Day in the Life of a Social Impact MBA Student

March 21, 2023 / cmcquarters / 0 Comments

Calah McQuarters, MBA’23

Hello! Welcome to a day in my life as a Heller grad student. I am so happy to have you here. While you’re here, please don’t touch anything. My life may look messy, but it is organized. And though it is organized, it is currently balancing delicately on a tightrope and very sensitive to the slightest disturbances. So hands to yourself. And no judgment either! Let’s get started.

7AM: My alarm goes off

7:01 AM: Snooze my alarm (Remember, no judgment!)

7:15 AM: I get my day started to make sure I’m out of the door on time. Every morning usually starts with a cup of coffee and a weather check. Surprisingly, winter hasn’t been bad this year. For a person that loves winter, I am disappointed. But for everyone else, it’s been nice.

8:30 AM: I head out and start my trek to campus. I moved to Massachusetts with a car, but I also moved with my sister who works in Arlington. So most days she takes the car and I get a workout. Fortunately for me, I only live about 20-25 minutes from campus (depending on how fast I want to walk that day). Unfortunately for me, about 15 of those minutes are uphill.

9AM: I arrive at Heller to start my shift as a Graduate Assistant in Admissions. This semester I work Mondays and Tuesdays. I answer emails, do some assigned tasks, and conduct an admissions interview for an MBA applicant (one of my favorite parts of the job). Because my shift is only three hours, time flies by.

12PM: I pack up my things and try to find a quiet corner to spend a few minutes studying. Why? Stay tuned and find out!

12:20 PM: I head downstairs for a meeting that starts in 10 minutes, but I don’t quite make it there because the Zinner forum is all decked out! It’s not just any Tuesday. It’s Valentine’s Day. There are chocolates, cupcakes, and coffee galore! And directly in the middle of Zinner is a table for people to stop by and write affirmations for the special people in their lives. I see a couple of my friends/cohort mates and take the opportunity to grab a treat!

12:30 PM: I head to Heller Alumni Lounge for the Board Fellows Orientation. Social Impact MBA students have the opportunity to serve as a Board Fellow starting their second semester. The program lasts one year, during which students are matched with a local non-profit and serve as a non-voting board member. Though many of us have already attended our first board meeting, this is an opportunity for all of the Board Fellows to come together, talk about our experiences and get insight from the Career Development Center on how to take full advantage of the year. Today, we also get to speak to Sean C. Rush, who serves on the Board of Advisors at Heller. This is a prime example of unique opportunities made available to students.

2PM: As all interesting meetings tend to do, the orientation starts to go a little long, but we end just in time for all of my cohort mates to scramble to an open room and take 20 minutes to panic and study. Why?

2:20 PM: Managerial Accounting. We have a quiz. I go in, sit, get my quiz, say a prayer, and get to work. I finish and go back out to Zinner, where I eat more sweet treats and write a couple notes on the affirmation cards. As my classmates get done, one by one, they start the conversation of “what did you get for this answer” and “I got all A’s for multiple choice”. Normally I don’t engage in these conversations. It is a trap to make you doubt everything you know in the world. I especially don’t engage in this particular conversation because I did not get A as an answer for any of the multiple choice… Eventually, everyone finishes and we all file back into class for the second half, where we learn new information.

5:10 PM: Class is over and I hitch a ride back down the hill to my apartment.

5:20 PM: I take some time to do nothing. This is very important in grad school. Life cannot always be go go go. That is the easiest way to experience burn out early in your grad school journey. Remember, it is a marathon, not a sprint. Pace yourself.

6PM: I get dinner started. I love to cook! So this activity doubles as a hobby outside of school and a requirement to stay alive.

7PM: I sit down to eat and check emails. In addition to working at Heller, I also have a part time job as a program manager for a local non profit. This job allows me to set my own schedule. So on days my schedule is a little more packed, this work gets reserved for the evening.

8PM: I start reading for my Thursday class. My general rule for grad school reading is to start at least two days before it is due. If you start the night before, chances are you won’t get to everything.

10PM-11PM: Do more nothing. One thing I truly hate is dreaming about what I am studying at the time. When this happens, I never really feel rested the next morning. So I like to take time before bed to do more nothing, whether that’s watching a show, scrolling on Tiktok, or talking to my parents. Remember, nothing is important!

11PM: Fall asleep thinking about all the things I have to do tomorrow.

I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into my life. As I said before, it is messily organized and hectically balanced. But overall, I love it. I’m still trying to schedule in a few workout sessions a week in addition to my hike up the hill. And I did choose to ignore my laundry today, but all of the doing and not doing comes together to make an abstract picture of me.

The Ultimate Balancing Act: School and Work

March 7, 2023 / cmcquarters / 0 Comments

Calah McQuarters, MBA’23

The most common question I have been asked during panel discussions, prospective student visits, and interviews is “Is it possible to work and go to school at the same time”? Well, I am here to answer this question once and for all for everyone: it depends. I know, I know. That is likely not the answer you were anticipating or wanting to hear, but it’s the truth! Every person is different. Every person’s capacity is different. Every person’s needs are different. Because of this, there is no one answer to this question. However, today, I will tell you about my experience balancing work and school.

This semester, in addition to taking 6 classes (20 credits), I also have two part time jobs. (I got exhausted just typing that out!) I am a Graduate Assistant for Heller’s Admissions department, hence the beautifully written blog posts you all receive from me regularly ;). I also work as a Program Manager for a local non-profit organization dedicated to healthy aging. I started both jobs in the same week and about a month after classes started (it was a very busy September). Combined, my jobs take up about 20-25 hours of my week outside of class and each requires something very different of me. As a GA, I spend the majority of my time talking to you all through emails, visits, and interviews. As a Program Manager, I am responsible for making sure programs run smoothly, grant reporting, meeting with local stakeholders, and whatever else is needed (such as being a website designer…). My GA role is in person while my other role is remote. As a GA I have a structured weekly schedule, but as a program manager I set my own hours. (Side note: flexible, remote jobs can be equally amazing and tricky. While you can work when you want and in whatever attire you want, the battle between napping and productivity is real and difficult every day. If I am transparent, napping has won more daily battles than productivity…) These two jobs are very different in so many ways. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, and each is teaching me something new almost daily! I share this information for two reasons: to show it is possible to work and be a full-time student and to also show the range of jobs accessible at Heller and the greater Boston area.

Now, before you run to start submitting job applications, let’s all take a step back and remember what I said in the beginning. Everyone is different. It has taken much trial and error to learn how to semi successfully balance school and work (not to mention extracurriculars). I have three different calendars and alarms galore to help me manage my time, and even with all of that, some days I still get behind. So why do I do it? Two reasons: capacity and need. As a person that loves being on the go, I tend to be energized by doing. I love being a busy bee and I haven’t run out of capacity (yet… we’re coming close). Also, life in the Boston area can be expensive (especially for a girl coming from Oklahoma!). As I said, everyone’s needs are different and right now, mine require a little extra money for monthly movie outings to keep me from going crazy :).

So there ya go! Is it possible? Yes. Is it necessary? That’s up to you, your capacity, and your needs. Either way, make sure what you’re committing your time to is serving you just as much as you are serving it.

A Day in the Life of a Second Year MBA/SID Student

March 2, 2023 / amendez / 0 Comments

Andy Mendez, MBA/SID’23

Now that we are nearing the end of Module 1, graduation is just over three months away! I thought this would be a great time to share what life is like for a Heller student wrapping up their studies and preparing for a postgraduate career. Today, I’ll walk you through what a typical Tuesday looks like for me this semester.

8:00am-10:00am — This is the first and only semester where I have my mornings entirely free. I use those extra hours to catch up on 4 semester’s worth of lost sleep!

10:00am-11:00am — By this point in the morning, I’ve left my bed and started my morning face cleansing routine. Gotta be extra vigilant in the winter when the air is dry. After that, I generally spend some time answering emails and posting or responding to posts on LinkedIn. Now that I’ve been named a Class of 2023 Finalist in the Presidential Management Fellows program, a lot of my time goes into setting up virtual coffee chats with PMF program alumni and other professionals to learn more about the different federal agencies where I might like to be placed.

11:00am-12:00pm — I head to the kitchen, where I usually pass either my MPP or PhD roommate, and make an early lunch. Since I have both an afternoon and evening class on Tuesdays, I make sure to pack dinner and some snacks in tupperware to take to campus.

12:00pm-1:00pm — At this point, I pack up my backpack and get dressed for the day. I double check that I have the required items for that day’s weather forecast, be it an umbrella or a scarf and gloves. I’m only a 20 minute walk to campus so as I’m heading out the door, I choose a podcast or music album on Spotify to listen to during my commute.

1:00pm-2:00pm — I join the other elected board members of the Heller Student Association for our biweekly meeting. We use this meeting to plan Heller-wide events, discuss concerns brought to us by students, and share our progress on special projects.

2:00pm-2:20pm — After gathering my belongings, I have a quick snack before going to claim my seat in the classroom for my afternoon course on Women, Peacemaking, & Peacebuilding. This is technically a COEX class, but I’m joined by a lot of my fellow SID classmates, who have a concentration in gender. The course is taught by Nanako Tamaru, the Executive Director of the Boston Network for International Development (BNID). BNID was one of the organizations I interviewed with when I was searching for a fall MBA internship last semester. While I ended up being placed with the Social Innovation Forum, I did have the opportunity to attend a few networking events sponsored by BNID. Another reason I was drawn to the course was Nanako’s work on the democratic process in Tunisia. As someone who worked next door in Morocco and is currently in the running for a Fulbright grant in Algeria, I was curious to learn more about her work on gender and peacebuilding in that region.

2:20pm-5:10pm — During the class session, Professor Nanako gives a brief lecture introducing that week’s topic and solicits the class’s response to that week’s readings. We spend time learning about the art and science of Op Ed writing and we end with a small group discussion. Before packing up, Professor Nanako reminds us of any upcoming assignments that are due before next class.

5:10pm-6:00pm — It’s dinner time! I usually head to the ground floor, where there are a set of round tables set up next to the microwave. As I’m eating dinner, I usually skim through that week’s readings again, to refresh my memory.

6:00pm-8:50pm — I head to the big auditorium room where I have Fundraising and Development with Professor David Whalen. This course draws a mix of MBA and SID students and attracts those either wanting more experience writing grants or those looking to grab the attention of funders. In the course, we not only look at the current landscape and trends in philanthropy, but spend time interrogating the impact philanthropy has had, for better or worse, on society.

8:50pm-9:30pm — After six hours of class, I can finally head home. Along the way, I sometimes stop at the Hannaford for groceries or the Walgreens for a few household items.

9:30pm-11:00pm — Once I’m home, I shower and have a small snack. On Wednesdays, I work as a Course Assistant for Financial Management, a required class for first-year MBA students. I spend the evenings making sure I’m ready for the next day’s class session. Since I have no evening classes on Wednesdays, I usually head to Brandeis’ Gosman gym for that evening’s group fitness class, so I pack my gym clothes and shoes on Tuesday evenings. Before Financial Management, I have my weekly check-in meeting with my supervisor at the Social Innovation Forum, where I’ve continued on as an intern. I make sure I have any necessary prep materials ready for this meeting.

11:00pm-12:00am — When I’m ready to call it a night, I double-check that my alarm is set, then head to bed.

A Day in the Life of a MS GHPM/MA SID student

February 28, 2023 / bruscitti / 0 Comments

Brielle Ruscitti, MS GHPM/MA SID’24

This semester, alongside my coursework, I am interning at the Sustainable Development Solutions Network and working in their education portfolio. I am currently working on projects related to program evaluation and outcomes. Today, I will be taking you through what a typical day looks like for me.

8am – I’ve had my morning coffee and packed up for the day so head out to campus, and start my day with my applied econometrics class at 9am.

10:30am – After my class ends, I start a bit of work on my internship. My work varies from day to day, but recently, I have been doing some analytics on survey data from the Global Schools program, which helps teachers implement education for sustainable development curriculum for schools across the world. I am investigating the relationship between the sustainable development goals and values that teachers think are most important. I am also working on some paper editing and communications with teachers involved in the Global Schools program.

12pm – I wrap up my internship work and head up to the Admissions desks where I start work. Somedays I work on blog posts, like this one, or meet with prospective students, and complete other tasks in the office.

2pm – My shift ends at 2pm, and I have a short break before my afternoon class starts, so I eat my lunch, take a mental break and go outside if the weather is nice. Then I head over to my introduction to demography class, which is only 7 weeks long, and I will have a new class starting in the middle of March. I have really enjoyed this class so far, but am excited to start another new topic in just a few weeks.

5pm- Shortly after 5, my class wraps up and I head home for the day. I usually make dinner and relax before heading to sleep after a busy day.

This day is definitely one of my busiest days but not all my days look like this. I have some days where I do not have any class and some days where I do not work, for my internship or at the Admissions office. I hope this gives some insight into what my days looks life and what you can do in your time as a Heller student.

Heller Admissions Blog

Category: Academics (page 1 of 9)

Reflections on my Letter to my Future Self

Neh Meh’s Favorite Class at Heller: Political Ecology and Development

The Importance of Pivoting

Surviving the Spring Semester

The Ultimate Balancing Act: School and Work

A Day in the Life of a MS GHPM/MA SID student

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