APSIA | August 15, 2019

The Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs partnered with APSIA to host a Public and International Student Advisor (PISA) Workshop for 28 advisors from upstate New York on August 14, 2019.

With financial support from the Robertson Foundation for Government, the Maxwell School is one of three schools selected nationwide to host a PISA Network training.

This half-day workshop featured a comparative look at professional graduate degrees, advice on helping students discern the best fit for them given their career goals, and resources for the advisors to help their students better prepare for application to and funding graduate school.

An alumni panel featured Sari Dallal, Communications Analyst at the World Bank, Amber Demery, Staff Operations Specialist for the FBI, James Murray of the Near East Foundation, and Jennifer-Lee Nieves Alvarez, a Public Partnerships Consultant with UNICEF to highlight the broad range of career opportunities available to graduates in public and international affairs. Content was coordinated by the Maxwell School undergraduate International Relations program in cooperation with the graduate Department of Public Administration and International Affairs.

“Our interactive discussions helped talk through some of the barriers to students’ success, share resources advisors need to advise and champion their students, and explain ways APSIA and graduate programs like ours can assist,” said Christine Omolino, Director of Admission & Financial Aid for Maxwell’s Department of Public Administration and International Affairs.

The following institutions will now have at least one PISA advisor on campus:

Binghamton University

Cazenovia College

Ithaca College

Le Moyne College

Onondaga Community College

Rochester Institute of Technology

St John Fisher College

SUNY Oswego

Syracuse University

University at Albany

Launched in 2018, the Public and International Service Advisor (PISA) Network brings together undergraduate advisors across the United States to advance understanding of the professions of international affairs, public policy, and public administration on their campuses. The Network provides support for and recognition of advisors as they counsel students to pursue careers in all of these fields.