Meet Gil, a 2016 graduate who concentrated his studies on Public and Nonprofit Management. He currently works as a research analyst at the national headquarters of the Anti-Defamation League in New York City. Here, he reflects on how CIPA helped him achieve his career goals.
What made you choose CIPA over other programs you were considering?
From the very beginning, I fell in love with Cornell University and Ithaca. Prior to my studies at CIPA, I was working at Cornell as the Jewish Agency Israel Fellow at Cornell Hillel. In light of my intention to pursue a master’s degree in public administration, I knew that CIPA will be the right fit for me. I was privileged to be physically on campus to discuss and consult with faculty and students from CIPA and even from other departments on campus regarding the program. The message was unified—the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs was the perfect program for me. I am glad to say that they were right!
What are your long-term career goals? How did CIPA help prepare you for these?
My long-term career goal is to become influential in the nonprofit or the political world in order to promote high-quality education for all while enhancing my commitment to my country—Israel, the Jewish world, human rights and the attempts to achieve real peace between Israel and Palestine.
What would you say are the top three reasons that CIPA was a good fit for you?
The first reason that CIPA was a good fit for me was the very flexible curriculum. Ezra Cornell’s motto was to found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study. CIPA, the way I see it, has wisely utilized this motto, which has become real thorough Cornell University’s 150 years of existence, in the best possible way. As a CIPA student, I was able to take classes all across campus, which were aligned with my future career goals. The second reason is the diversity of students at the program and the strong sense of community. A large number of students are international. I have learned from them as much as I have learned from the instructors. In today’s global world, it is very important to be exposed to other cultures and nations. I encourage prospective students to observe and soak as much knowledge as possible from their international classmates. It might be an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work together with people from all over the world. This experience, I can guarantee, will be enhanced by the very strong sense of community that prevails at CIPA. And last, but not least, the third reason CIPA was a good fit was because it was part of Cornell, one of the best universities in the world (and perhaps the most beautiful, as well!). Cornell is known for its unique, intellectually vibrant atmosphere.
Are there any particular “stand out” experiences at CIPA that had a lasting impact on you?
There are two “stand out” experiences at CIPA that have had a lasting impact on me. They are both experiential opportunities, which are a part of CIPA’s curriculum: a summer internship and Capstone. As a student interested in education policy, I was interning at the District of Columbia Public Schools. During the internship, I conducted research regarding alternatives approaches to school suspensions. In my domestic Capstone project, my teammates and I evaluated the current reporting tools of the Ithaca City School District, and submitted a final report to the district’s administration that included recommendations on effective ways to communicate current and historical data on key metrics. In both experiences, I was able to implement the knowledge I had gained in CIPA in order to solve real- life problem that affects the students in both districts. That said, these experiences also allowed me to discern some of the gaps between what I have learned and thought I can use, and current educational issues that need to be investigated more deeply.