How did you decide on the history major?
I came into Mason as a Global Affairs major and eventually decided to switch to History. I had really enjoyed my history classes in high school and decided to take the history course on Stalinism as an elective. That was it for me. I switched my major mid-way through the semester. I really enjoy the way history is such an interdisciplinary subject and how research oriented most of the classes are.
Are you minoring or double majoring in anything else? If so, how do the two work together – or separately?
I am double majoring in Russian and Eurasian Studies with a concentration in Russia Studies. The two majors go together really well! Not only do some of my classes count for both majors but the type of work that I do is complementary. Having the economics, government, and cultural knowledge to back up my historical understanding is helpful. Having the training in historical method has made me a better writer and researcher, which is helpful in all of my classes.
What have you learned in a history class that really surprised you/changed your perspective?
I’ve loved every single one of the history classes I’ve taken at Mason but my Terror and the Military State in Latin America class has probably been the most impactful. The class has nothing to do with my historical interests but Professor Cowan is such an amazing teacher. The way that we approached the subject from many different angles and using all sorts of sources (movies, literature, music, as well as traditional scholarly sources) was really influential in how I choose to approach historical topics. I loved my Stalinism class with Professor Barnes for much the same reason.
Tell us about your dream occupation…
I would really love to work in a Russia-centric historical archive. The field of archival science is growing and changing quickly and there are a lot of interesting opportunities. I haven’t decided yet whether or not I want to go for my master’s in Russian Studies or in Archival Science or maybe both!
Have you had any internships? Or interesting jobs or volunteer experience? Tell us about it/them.
As part of my study abroad program I had a wonderful internship placement at the Open Society Archives in Budapest, Hungary. The Open Society Archives are part of the George Soros Foundation and are an influential force in the area. My supervisors were committed from the very beginning to giving me a well-rounded internship experience. They let me work on projects that I was interested in and I helped decide whether certain materials were worth further analysis by the archive staff. I even ran a meeting with the director of the archives and other senior staff.
I also really enjoyed being a Peer Learning Partner my freshman year. I got to know a lot of really interesting international students and learn all sorts of things from the research papers that I helped them write. I’m going to be doing something similar in the fall as a Peer Research Mentor for the Honors College.
Any accomplishments you’re proud of? Opportunities you’ve taken advantage of? Brag a little!
My freshman year, I was part of the Youth Intercultural Studies Program to Turkey which was an amazing and unconventional study abroad opportunity. I was able to meet all sorts of Turkish politicians, think tank directors, community leaders, and scholars. We went at the same time as the huge wave of protests, which was exciting and interesting.
I’m really excited about having my OSCAR (Office of Student Scholarship, Creative Activities, & Research) research project approved for funding this summer. I am going to research Russian Theosophy and Russian national identity at the turn of the century.
Tell us something people would be surprised to know about you.
As of this spring break, I have officially traveled to 19 countries!