Internship and Career Opportunities
The internship provides insight and networking opportunities, and helps students narrow down the fields that they would like to pursue after graduation. Ideally, students can utilize their internship experience to inform their graduate thesis that will be completed in the spring of the final year in the MS IRP.
MS IRP Career Placements
| Industry | Employer | Position | Location |
| Consulting | Accenture | Security Analyst | Atlanta, GA |
| Intelligence | Dataminr | Cyber Risk Domain Expert | Seattle, WA |
| Intelligence | Defense Intelligence Agency | Intelligence Officer | Washington, DC |
| Intelligence | Department of Defense | Analyst | Washington, DC |
| PhD/Law School | Georgetown University Law School | Law Student | Washington, DC |
| Intelligence | Maxar, Applied Mission Innovation | Intelligence Analyst | Washington, DC |
| Research | Middle East Institute | Program Associate | Washington, DC |
| Consulting | S-RM Consulting | International Security Consultant | Washington, DC |
| Education | Saga Education | Tutoring Fellow | Chicago, IL |
| Government | US Senate, Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) | Legislative Correspondent | Washington, DC |
| Law | Ross & Hill, PLLC | Paralegal | New York, NY |
MS IRP Internship Placements
| Industry | Internship Organization | Location |
| Advocacy | Ameriinfo Vets | Germantown, MD |
| Government | Attorney General of Baltimore Campaign | Baltimore, MD |
| Law | Bonina and Bonina, P.C. | New York, NY |
| Government | Bronx District Office of Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) | New York, NY |
| Research | CERT, Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University- Cyber Risk and Resilience Intern | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Law | Constantinople and Vallone LLC | New York, NY |
| Research | Council on Foreign Relations | New York, NY |
| Government | Department of Transportation | Washington, DC |
| Research | Hudson Institute, Center for Political-Military Analysis | Washington, DC |
| Research | Institute for the Study of War | Washington, DC |
| Government | Office of Congressman Jim Clyburn (D-SC 6th District)- Leadership Office (Majority Whip) | Washington, DC |
| Government | Office of the Mayor of Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Government | Office of US Senator Paul Strauss (D-DC/Shadow) | Washington, DC |
| Research | Pacific Council on International Policy | Los Angeles, CA |
| Research | Potomac Institute for Policy Studies: International Center for Terrorism Studies (ICTS) | Arlington, VA |
| Research | RAND Corporation | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Government | Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) | Washington, DC |
| Research | The Organization for World Peace | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Research | University of Pittsburgh Matthew B. Ridgway Center for International Security Studies | Pittsburgh, PA |
An intern informing change
The truth matters to Jordyn Gilliard. Eventually, she would like to work at the United Nations, using her communications skills to facilitate the spread of factual information.
“There’s so much of, no one believes anything that’s online now,” said Gilliard, a member of the Institute for Politics and Strategy’s Master of Science in International Relations and Politics program. “My goal is to make sure that everything is truthful and accurate.”
In 2021, Gilliard completed the first year of the two-year Master’s program, which seeks to train the next generation of political scientists to examine and understand government institutions and processes in the twenty-first century’s continuously changing global political structure. That summer, she interned at The Borgen Project, an advocacy organization that lobbies the US government to make poverty a priority in its foreign policy agenda. She wrote her first article on the impact of the COVID vaccine in Malta. She also lobbied state and local elected officials, calling their offices to advocate for bills that have stalled in the legislature.
Alumni Perspective
"The greatest impact that the Master's program had on me was the opportunity to work in-depth with leading researchers in a small class setting. The opportunity to work one-on-one with the faculty has given me a greater attention to detail that I employ every day in a fast-paced government environment."
Robert Stephens (MS IRP, 2018)
US Department of Defense, Analyst
"My international relations degree at CMU was unmatched in the way that it pushed us to achieve and perform at extremely high levels, and the level of rigor that it required to be successful. We had the opportunity to work with some extremely accomplished and attentive faculty and develop long lasting relationships that I look forward to maintaining throughout my life."
Raaga Kalva (MS IRP, 2019)
Defense Intelligence Agency, Intelligence Officer
"The graduate program was the perfect opportunity to explore a subject matter focus prior to law school. The professors were especially impactful in shaping and inspiring my career goals."
Alex Pasch (MS IRP, 2018)
Georgetown University Law School, Student
"I am very excited to see the program expanding and continually becoming better. Being in the MS IRP program allowed me to gain great subject matter information as well as important skills developed by the coursework as well as the thesis process that I continue to use. The new curriculum and expansion have made this already impactful program even more comprehensive and exceptional."
Kellen Carleton (MS IRP, 2019)
Accenture, Security Analyst
Career and Professional Development Center
Resume, Cover Letter and Interview Guidance
Graduate Student Professional Development Workshops
Technology Consulting in the Global Community
One-on-One Advising
Partnerships
Funding
Friedman Fellowships, which support unpaid or low-paying internships based in DC
Olitsky Family Foundation Internship Grant, designed to support early career experiences for students with emotional and cognitive differences