Please join us in welcoming the Ford School's 2017 Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) fellows to Ann Arbor.
The PPIA program, which the Ford School has participated in each year since 1983, aims to promote diversity in public service. To do so, host schools help to prepare students from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in public policy and international affairs for graduate school, and careers of leadership, in the sector.
- Read "35 years on: Next-gen leaders reflect on public policy, international affairs prep school," by JACKSON VOSS (PPIA '13, MPP '18)
Competitively selected, our 18 PPIA fellows will spend seven weeks at the Ford School completing an intensive curriculum that includes courses in statistics, economics, policy writing, and GRE preparation, as well as two-week modules on topical policy issues taught by Ford School faculty members. They will also engage in enrichment and professional development activities, including cover letter and resume writing workshops, a graduate school fair, and more.
This year's impressive PPIA fellows hail from undergraduate institutions across the nation, including Bard College, Davidson College, Georgetown University, Michigan State University, Penn State University, Syracuse College, Villanova University, Xavier University, and the Universities of California, Maryland, Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Puerto Rico, and Texas.
Their undergraduate majors represent a broad range of disciplines, including anthropology, business, communications, economics, ethnic studies, gender studies, government, history, international relations, political science, public health, social policy, sociology, and urban affairs.
And their policy interests are equally diverse, with fellows expressing interest in affordable housing, criminal justice, economic development, educational disparities, environmental protection, gender discrimination, labor rights, public health, racial bias, social welfare, science and technology, transportation, urban affairs, and more.
The Ford School is proud of to be one of four policy programs in the nation that offer free summer institutes for PPIA Fellows, and one of the only programs to host PPIA fellows each year since joining. Other summer institute hosts include Heinz College (Carnegie Mellon University), the Goldman School (University of California, Berkeley), and the Woodrow Wilson School (Princeton University).