Amanda Murphyao was chosen to intern this fall with the Canada Institute at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC.
Murphyao, a PhD candidate with Canadian Studies, left Ottawa two weeks ago to start her internship. You can follow her journey on her blog.
She is working on several informational projects for members of Congress regarding cross-border policy initiatives, as well as outreach programs and research on environmental projects.
“This is a great opportunity to combine my research on Canada (and my comparative U.S.-Canada interests) with hands-on experience working with a think tank in Washington DC.,” says Murphyao. “It will be wonderful to have time to conduct research for my dissertation in the Library of Congress, and interesting to compare my time on Parliament Hill in Ottawa with DC.”
Murphyao’s dissertation focuses on visual representations (especially cartoons and maps) of Newfoundland when it became a province in 1949, Alaska and Hawaii when they became states in 1959, and Nunavut when it became a territory in 1999 to show how these events set the scene for contemporary sovereignty disputes and debates over national identity.
Although the internships with the Canada Institute are unpaid, the participants gain valuable practical experience in an environment that successfully mixes academic study with public policy working on a variety of projects such as conference organization, library and Internet research, assistance with the preparation of publications and administrative assignments in support of program and Center activities.
“I really enjoy the Canadian Studies program,” says Murphyao. “This internship will allow me to expand the scope of my research and bring new ideas from colloquia and symposia at the Center to the School of Canadian Studies.”
She will return to Carleton on November 8, 2013.
Information about the internship program is available on the Wilson Center website.
Friday, August 23, 2013 in Grad Student Research, News
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