MPA-ESP Students Pursue Diverse Career Paths

Members of the sixth graduating class of the Master of Public Affairs in Environmental Science and Policy program considered diverse career paths. Many have entered government and environmental planning and management positions while others are pursuing careers in the private sector and science markets.

After graduation on May 19^th, Ashley Mercer started working with the Government of the Northwest Territories (NWT). As Licensing Coordinator for the NWT, Ashley allocates licenses for researchers to study issues such as climate change and human health. She also oversees information exchange with the community, media, and other researchers. Said Mercer, "The MPA ESP workshop, especially being a manager, provided a set of organizational and professional skills that have taught me to engage in these processes in a professional and useful way. Also, the politics class taught by Professor Sara Tjossem, while USA focused, introduced important concepts to understand the salient and deep-seeded political context of the North." The Workshops in Applied Earth Systems Policy Analysis and Management, which challenge students to apply their theoretical knowledge and functional skills to address real-world environmental policy and management issues, are a unique aspect of the MPA ESP program. Mercer is very enthusiastic about her new job-though, in order to endure the extreme temperatures of the NWT, she has had to purchase a winter wardrobe complete with a 500-dollar parka.

Several MPA ESP graduates finalized their placement in the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) program. The PMF program is a prestigious two-year government fellowship that places award recipients in the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development (HUD); Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); NASA and others. Candidates are nominated by their graduate school following a stringent assessment process. 

Another MPA ESP student, Anirban Ghosh, has joined EnerNOC's Boston headquarters as an Energy Markets Associate. According to its website, "EnerNOC, Inc. is a leading developer and provider of clean and intelligent energy solutions to commercial, institutional, and industrial customers, as well as electric power grid operators and utilities." Ghosh's work over the course of the MPA ESP program focused on cutting carbon and lifecycle emissions. Ghosh said, "The position requires a considerable amount of experience in data and trend analysis." As an Energy Markets Associate at EnerNOC, Ghosh analyzes strategies to reduce energy use during periods of peak demand. 

Past graduates of the MPA ESP program are applying their skills in a wide range of nonprofit, government and private fields. They are working in organizations such as the National Resource Defense Council, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, City of New York Office of Energy Conservation, United Nations Development Programme, PricewaterhouseCoopers, NASA, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), U.S. EPA and EcoSecurities.

For more information on where graduates of the MPA-ESP program are working, click here.