Graduate Students Deployed to Canadian Embassies
In early January, ten master's students from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) journeyed to ten foreign capitals to complete four-month internships in Canadian embassies.
Over the past 18 months, more than 30 students taking the master's degree in public and international affairs have gone on short-term postings in other countries as part of this innovative program, the only one of its kind in Canada. Venturing off on foreign internships this time around are Radmila Sionov (Moscow), Andrew Deruga (Riga, Latvia), Thida Souksanh (Manilla, Philippines) and Waqas Yousafzai (Damascus, Syria).
During their 15-week postings, the students will learn the ins and outs of Canadian diplomacy and will actually be called on to represent Canada before an array of international bodies and organizations.
For Luc Juillet, director of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, the internships reflect the unique mission the School has undertaken: “In addition to providing our students with first-rate theoretical training, we want to give them a taste of the practical, day-to-day realities of international relations and of the many, many stakes involved in the public policy issues facing Canada and the entire international community. Thanks to these internships in Canadian missions abroad, students can indeed link theory to practice, and they come away with a tremendously enriching personal experience.”
Follow their stories on the Interns' blogs.
Robert Asselin
Published: January 2011