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From the monthly archives: June 2011
In a nice bit of summer news, I learned recently that five of the seven recipients of the Program on Negotiation Summer Fellowships for 2011 are Fletcher students. The Program on Negotiation is a consortium that includes Tufts, and is situated at Harvard Law School.
Nice job, Ashley, Rishi, Sam, Jenny, and Margot!
In May, before the students took off for their summer internships or post-Fletcher lives, I asked them for suggestions to pass along to incoming students. While most of the ideas relate specifically to life at Fletcher (and I’ll hold those until closer to the start of Orientation), a handful are tips for your pre-Fletcher summer. Before any more time gets away, here is a selection of suggestions from the experienced:
Amy: If I were starting at Fletcher in the fall, I would take the summer off and spend time with my family.
Veronica: If I were preparing to go to Fletcher in September, I would give extra thought to career planning, and I would also travel somewhere I’ve never been.
Margot: If you’re concerned about the language exam, I suggest reading a newspaper in your language every day. The vocabulary in regular news stories is quite similar to what you’ll see on the exam. Also — catch up on reading fiction! You won’t look at that stack of novels again (except longingly) until next May, so make a dent now.
Jeff agrees: Read.
But he also suggests: Start investigating housing early. It fills up fast in the Medford/Somerville area. And be realistic about your budget — make sure it is in line with actual costs in the area.
Rachel: If I were starting at Fletcher in the fall, I would try to pursue language study, because sometimes it’s hard to find the time to audit language classes on top of everything else you’re doing.
Vanessa: Spend a week on a beach and read lots of fiction.
So, incoming students (2012 and future years’), you can see a theme emerging in just these few suggestions. First, take time to read, see your family, and travel. But also, take care of some basic Fletcher student needs, such as housing, career planning, and language preparation.
When Admissions life is quiet in the summer, I turn to my home life for blog inspiration, making the bold assumption that blog readers want to know about Fletcher’s neighborhood.
And this past weekend, we packed in a lot of the activities that remind me how nice it is to live in a mid-sized metropolitan area. In addition to miscellaneous chores on Saturday, my husband, Paul, and I went to see “The Trip” (funny!) and followed my hankering for a bibimbap to a Korean restaurant for dinner. On Sunday, we picked strawberries (21 pounds — many already consumed) and spent a few cloudy but relaxing hours at the beach.
But it’s Friday evening’s activity that I’ll most recommend for blog readers’ June 2012 enjoyment: the Central Square Dance Party. Stretching from Cambridge City Hall to the YMCA that featured in Jhumpa Lahiri’s story, “The Third and Final Continent,” the party starts at 7:00, when children occupy much of the dance “floor,” and runs until 11, when it looks like any other dance party, except better because you’re in the middle of a major street. My favorite source of tips on upcoming Boston events, Johnny, agrees that the dance party is a must-do! There are quite a few clips of the party (both 2011 and previous years’) on Youtube. I like this one best. Mark it on your calendar, and I’ll see you on the dance floor next year!
Returning to the subject of two weeks ago, pre-Fletcher preparatory summer reading, I thought I’d point you toward a few of the professors’ own works.
Among recent books and articles are:
Prof. Jacque‘s, Global Derivative Debacles: From Theory to Malpractice. He assures us that, “It is written for a broad audience and not overly technical.”
Prof. Martel‘s, Victory in War. Note that this is a revision of the book, originally published in 2007. (And significantly revised, from what I hear from Prof. Chayes, who made sure her colleague received due recognition.)
Prof. Salacuse sent me several links. First there’s his new book, The Law of Investment Treaties. And then there are two articles: “The Emerging Global Regime for Investment,” in the Harvard International Law Journal, and “Opening Moves – They Can Make or Break Any Deal,” in Tufts Magazine.
And Prof. Forest (visiting Fletcher this past year) points us toward his new book: Influence Warfare.
This is only a small sampling — whatever crossed my email at the end of the semester — but you can find a more complete list of student and faculty publications in the News and Media section of the Fletcher website.
Tucked into a lecture room this week are the participants in the 2011 Fletcher Summer Institute for the Advanced Study of Nonviolent Conflict. By its own reckoning, the program is the only executive education program of its type (advanced, interdisciplinary, taught by scholars and practitioners). If you want a sense of what’s being covered, you can check out the presentations from the 2010 Summer Institute. Plus, you can follow this year’s proceedings on Twitter.
Fletcher students are generally on-the-go people, but some go further, or more often, than others. Tonight, one of our alums will kick off an adventure that I want to share, though blog readers shouldn’t worry that a similar trek will be expected of them!
Charlie Scott was at Fletcher in the 90s, during what I call my “first Fletcher life,” (before the Admissions Office). We never really fell out of touch, but we’ve been in more frequent contact during roughly the last five years. I particularly enjoy hearing about his marathon-running and related exploits.
Fast forward to today, when Charlie and his two children are flying to Iceland for their latest adventure — bicycling around and across that island country. This would be a challenge under any circumstances, but all the more so because they’ll be one continuous traveling machine, with Charlie at the front, 10-year-old Sho on a connected bike in the middle, and four-year-old Saya luxuriating in a trailer at the rear. Like this:
I was happy to be a link in the Fletcher network, connecting Charlie to Halla, a current MALD student from Iceland, who helped him figure out some of the questions he needed to ask. And then he was off, lining up sponsorships and linking to the UN Environment Programme, which had named Sho and Charlie “Climate Heroes” when they rode across Japan in 2009. (Check out their description of that 67 day adventure.) They’re returning the honor by raising funds for the UN’s Billion Tree Campaign.
Charlie’s keeping a blog during the trip, which I know I’ll be checking every day. I’ll update Admissions Blog readers later in the summer, too.
Good luck to Charlie, Sho, and Saya!
Just a quick reminder today that, if you wish to take the current version of the GRE exam, you need to do so before the end of July. Starting August 1, ETS will offer its new version of the exam. Fletcher does not have a preference between the two exam formats for admissions purposes, but you should be aware of the delayed reporting schedule for the new version.
It’s summer (on the academic calendar, if not yet according to the sun’s location), and the blog is having trouble establishing a consistent schedule. More accurately, I’ve reduced my working hours, by taking some vacation days, while at the same time trying to finish up two May/June projects. No surprise, then, that the blog is languishing as a result. But one project is complete, and the other is in good shape, and I look forward to writing more regularly, starting next week.
Have a good summer weekend!
On Wednesday last week, a solid Fletcher contingent headed over to the Tufts Boston campus to celebrate the winners of the Tufts Distinction Awards, most notably our own Kristen Zecchi, who was recognized in the Change Agent category.
Kristen was the first member of the staff for the MIB (Master’s in International Business) Program, starting her work more than a year before the first students arrived. Launching a new academic program is no simple task, and Kristen has ensured that all sorts of issues, not only Admissions questions, have stayed on the front burner until they have been solved.
We all enjoyed celebrating with Kristen, shown below with all the winners (front row, far left). You can find more photos from the Tufts photography staff on the TDA photo page. Congratulations, Kristen!
