Lessons learned

We're winding down fall semester at the Monterey Institute.  I'm ready for it.  Though I've been incredibly busy at times and a bit lazy in others, it's been thought provoking and productive.  I always feel that I didn't get enough done, but when I reflect on the topics and range of issues we've covered in just three months, it seems we've done well.  My courses have included:

Introduction to Development, an intro course into international social, health and financial policy in developing nations.

Introduction to Migration, an intro to international human migratory theory, trends and analysis.

Intellectual Discourse in Modern Russia, a survey of current Russian-speaking media covering domestic, foreign policy and regional socio-economic themes.

Data Analysis and Research Methods.  Ugh.  Exactly what it sounds like - Stats.  But better than I expected.

Russia: Friend or Foe?, an analysis of current Russia - international relations.  Timely and controversial, particularly following the Russian/Georgian conflict from this past August.

Most fun for me has been interjecting my experiences from Mongolia into my coursework.  I've developed an analysis of Mongolian refugee policy and internal migration for one course and have built upon my experience working with UNDP in another.  Though MIIS is certainly not a perfect institution, it does do an excellent job at preparing students for the real world.  We're learning the skills we need to go out into the field and hit the ground running.

We're endowed with a combo of the year's running themes:  

Experience and a healthy scoop of Hope.