resume example
Admissions Tips

The benefits of a clean resumé

Daniel Birdsall

Throughout this blog’s history, Jessica has provided a lot of insight and helpful advice for preparing various pieces of your Fletcher application, all of which remains relevant. At the risk of further flattening well-trodden territory, I’ll offer some thoughts during the coming weeks on things for applicants to keep in mind as they prepare individual portions of the application (and I’ll here remind readers that the deadline for Early Notification applications is November 15). Today, a few words about resumés.

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Our StaffOur Students

Meet the 2018-2019 Admissions Graduate Assistants

Daniel Birdsall

One of the many pleasures of the start of the academic year is the crew of Graduate Assistants (GAs) who join our office. They provide crucial support to the many projects we work on throughout the year, and we’d have a tough time staying afloat without their efforts. It’s also gratifying for us to get to know these Fletcher students well, and to stay that much more abreast of what’s happening in the student community by virtue of having them as members of our team. Some blog readers may also feel like they come to know our GAs; if you contact our office, it’s likely one of them who will answer your initial call or respond to your email.

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Our Neighborhood

Winter is coming…but not before autumn

Daniel Birdsall

The northeastern United States sometimes takes a lot of guff for its less than enviable weather. DC is a sweaty mess for 4-5 months in the warmer months, and NYC and Boston (perhaps the latter in particular) are known for their intense winters. We’ll occasionally encounter a prospective student who’s never been to this part of the country (or the world) before clearly laboring under the presumption that spending a year or two in these parts is akin to taking the black with the Night’s Watch. It’s true that the cold months can feel like a slog, but too much winter-related agita can obscure the pleasures of experiencing four distinct seasons, and for my money none rivals autumn.

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About Fletcher

SIMULEX 2018

Daniel Birdsall

One of the highlights of the academic year is taking place this weekend at Fletcher. SIMULEX, the annual crisis management exercise hosted by the International Security Studies Program (ISSP), will take over the building on Friday and Saturday. While my mental image of SIMULEX sometimes resembles a game of Nukem!, or involves tense standoffs and commands of “turn your key, sir,” in reality it’s a major learning and professional networking opportunity for the Fletcher community, and not limited only to students formally focusing on security studies.

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About Fletcher

Decolonizing International Relations

Daniel Birdsall

It’s been a busy week at Fletcher, which means a busy week for this blog, as well. There are so many events that take place throughout the year here that it’s impossible to highlight them all on this platform, but one happening today particularly caught my attention. The inaugural “Decolonizing International Relations” conference is currently in progress, and it’s an impressive event. Organized by the student-run Fletcher Students of Color and Allies (FSCA), the conference will apply critical theory to a variety of subject areas, highlight non-Western contributions and perspectives in academia and the field, and explore the role of power and access in the study and practice of international relations.

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Kaitlyn Fitzgerald
Our Students

Kaitlyn’s Parisian summer with the Department of State

Daniel Birdsall

Have I mentioned how nice it is to have students back on campus? Among the many pleasures of a fully-populated Fletcher is the return of our Student Stories bloggers. In the coming months you’ll be introduced to our group of new first-year blog contributors; in the meantime, it’s nice to catch up with what our continuing student writers have been up to over the summer. First up is Kaitlyn, whose summer in Paris with the Department of State is enough to cause a pang of jealousy in even the most stoic reader.

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