Current position and employer: Research Associate, Pennywise Foundation
Hometown: Shtip, North Macedonia
Current City: Washington, DC
Why did you choose McCourt? I chose Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy, as I believe it to be a diverse community of changemakers who share values and are committed to developing policy solutions to problems faced across the globe. I was also drawn to McCourt’s strong emphasis on quantitative research and analytical rigor, an area I felt was missing from my previous policy experience and one that I wanted to strengthen. Additionally, I chose McCourt to experience not only Georgetown as my campus, but all of Washington, DC.
What professional/ work experience did you have prior to coming to McCourt? My professional experience so far has been focused on youth policy and advocacy in youth networks, non-profit and international organizations. In my prior role as Program Manager in the National Youth Council of North Macedonia, I spearheaded advocacy campaigns aimed at improving the overall well-being and access to rights for young people in North Macedonia, their access to policy- and decision-making processes, and ensuring their voices resonate in politics. My most notable experiences are in advocacy for access and participation of Western Balkans youth in European policy, as a delegate to the European Youth Forum, as well as in regional youth policy work, where I enhanced regional cooperation among the Western Balkan 6 youth stakeholders, through the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the Connecting Youth platform.
What was the best part of your experience? My new chapter at McCourt already feels exceptionally rewarding! I’m not only building upon my prior public policy experience and expanding my analytical skills, but I’m also deepening my understanding of critical policy issues, while forging connections with the diverse faculty and peers. The diverse specter of McCourt student organizations are an added value to the experience.
What internships did you have during your time at McCourt?As a recipient of the McCourt School Pennywise Foundation Fellowship, I have served as a Research Assistant with the Pennywise Foundation. In my second year of studies, I also worked as a Teaching Assistant for courses in statistical methods and negotiation. In addition, I served as a Research Fellow with Tech Policy Press.
Student organization involvement while at McCourt: At the start of my studies, I was appointed as an At-Large Member of the McCourt Student Association’s New Student Committee, an Associate at the European Policy Organization, and a Junior Editor at the Georgetown Public Policy Review. In my second year, I was elected by my peers to serve as Vice President of the McCourt Student Association.
Undergraduate University, degree, and major: Goce Delchev University of Shtip, Bachelor of Laws
Hobbies/ Interests: Aside from policy work, in my free time I get the most excited about travel, hiking, and conversations over coffee on film, music and architecture. In terms of policy areas, I am interested about foreign policy, democracy, peace and security policy, political strategy and negotiation.
Reach out to me about: Moving to DC; Non-quant background; Non-profit background; Similar policy interests.