Tatsuo’s Annotated Curriculum
Throughout these past two academic years, you’ve been reading the stories of three students, Tatsuo, Adnan, and McKenzie. Now it’s time for them to describe their academic pathways for us in their “annotated curriculum” posts. The first of these is from Tatsuo, who spent three semesters at Fletcher and his fourth semester in an exchange program in Paris.
Pre-Fletcher Experience
Administrative (Legal/Policy) Officer, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Tokyo, Japan
Fields of Study
Law and Development
Modern Maritime Issues and American Foreign Policy (self-designed Field of Study)
Capstone Topic
“The Needed Technocratic Bureaucracy for Transport Infrastructure Development in LDCs: An Assessment of the Case of Civil Aviation Policies in Timor-Leste” (Advisor: Professor James Fry)
Post-Fletcher Professional Goals
Return to the Ministry as a deputy director to manage Japanese infrastructure policies, including overseas development aid projects.
Curriculum Overview
Semester One
Law and Development
Development Economics: Policy Analysis
Foundations in Financial Accounting and Corporate Finance
Crisis Management and Complex Emergencies
In my first semester, I took two courses on international development studies, which was my top priority for study at Fletcher. Additionally, I took two courses on finance and security. These were not the focus of my professional career, but I had heard that the school has a long and deep tradition in the field of security studies and it has also developed resources for business studies. All of these courses were good for connecting me with Fletcher’s traditional and more recently developed strengths, and it was a good foundation for me as I planned my academic life at Fletcher.
Semester Two
Global Maritime Affairs: International Trade, Security, Energy, and Environmental Issues at Sea
Science Diplomacy: Environmental Security in the Arctic Ocean
The Foreign Relations of the United States Since 1917
International Investment Law
The Islamic World: Political Economy and Business Context (0.5 credit)
Based on my experiences in my first semester, I decided to make my course range broader than what I originally expected. I had already planned to choose Law and Development as my first Field of Study, and I thought I would also have another development-related second Field. However, I changed my mind, and decided to design my own Field of Study. I selected from Fletcher resources linking multiple fields, including security, science, and business to form “Modern Maritime Issues and American Foreign Policy,” and I included various courses ranging from conventional diplomatic studies to emerging fields in science and business.
Summer Internship
The Asia Foundation, Timor-Leste
A second-year MALD student introduced me to the Timor-Leste office of the Asia Foundation, a global international development NGO. The vice director of the office was also a Fletcher alumnus and he gave me an interesting opportunity to experience the realities of international development. As I described in a previous post, I focused on policy development for the Timorese civil aviation market based on my practical experiences in Japan and academic studies at Fletcher. It was the first time for me to live in a “least developed country” and also a great opportunity to connect practical expertise, academic theory, and the actual needs of the people in the field.
Semester Three
Grand Strategy in Diplomacy, Past and Present
Building Long-Term Relationships and Sharing Value with Stakeholders
Political Speechwriting
African Key Economic Issues
Economics and Globalization
Japanese Politics and International Relations (audit)
French A1 (audit)
In my third semester, I studied at Sciences Po in Paris through a Fletcher exchange program. I took diplomacy and development courses similar to those that I took at Fletcher, in order to compare different perspectives and approaches. Additionally, I learned about areas in which France leads the world, such as project management and public relations. I enjoyed not only great French cuisine and wine, but also unique approaches that were very different from what I studied in the U.S.
Semester Four
The Strategic Dimensions of China’s Rise
Cross-Sector Partnerships
International Humanitarian Response (offered jointly by Tufts Friedman School and Harvard School of Public Health)
U.S.-European Relations Since the Fall of the Berlin Wall (0.5 credit)
Cities, Infrastructures, and Politics: From Renaissance to Smart Technologies (audit at Harvard Graduate School of Design)
In my fourth and final semester, I am taking courses that I chose based only on my curiosity, because I had already taken all my required courses. Cross-Sector Partnerships and International Humanitarian Response are practical and case-study-based courses that are good for wrapping up my study and internship experiences in the MALD program. China’s Rise is also a very realistic security studies course, taught by Professor Yoshihara from the U.S. Naval War Collage, that can test what I learned about diplomacy and security. I expect to acquire another European perspective from U.S.-European Relations, taught by Professor Scharioth, a former German Ambassador to the U.S. I also wanted to extend my perspective by auditing a Harvard Graduate School of Design course that introduces the views of designers and architects.
When I am back with the Japanese Government, many and various tasks are waiting for me, from economics to security to East Asian security crises to preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. I am very excited to tackle these issues by using the skills and experiences that I acquired in my two years at Fletcher. It will be very interesting and exciting. At the same time, however, I wish I had one more year, or at least one more semester, at Fletcher.