Young scholars from around the world turn to higher education institutions in the US to develop their diplomatic and policy-making skills.
Consider Siyabulela Mandela, 26, a relative of Nelson Mandela, the first black president of South Africa and an anti-apartheid icon. Nelson Mandela envisioned a prosperous Africa living in peace, a vision that inspired young Mandela to obtain a PhD in Conflict Resolution at the higher education institution named after his relative: Nelson Mandela University in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Mandela spent four months at the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University in Virginia, working on his dissertation.
He chose the university because of its reputation in peace research — some of the institution’s scholars influenced young Mandela’s own views on the subject.
“I will follow in his footsteps and carry on his legacy,” Siyabulela Mandela said about the man he called grandfather, although, in reality, Nelson Mandela was his cousin. The elder statesman, who died in 2013, won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end apartheid in South Africa.
Natcha Suwanmalee, 23, from Thailand, chose Tufts University in Massachusetts “to learn how Americans think” and how American diplomats might think. Natcha hopes to work for the Thai government when she finishes school, preferably at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her introduction to the American educational system came in her teenage years when she spent her last year of high school at Choate Rosemary Hall in Connecticut. From Choate, Natcha went to the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington.
The fact that a former governor of Bangkok and a former Thai foreign minister graduated from Georgetown gave her even more reasons to apply for a master’s degree at that university.
Another advantage of studying in the US, Natcha says, is the diversity of people she meets. “There are people from all over the world,” she said. “And when we make friends with students, we are curious about their culture and want to learn more.”
Source: share.america.gov, by Lenore T. Adkins