Samuel Ludovici

2/1/2016
POSC 292
Self-Introduction Paper
As a student currently enrolled in Political Science 292: Political Science Careers, I am
hoping to make the most out of this class in my final semester in my attempt to earn a bachelors
degree here at Radford University. Overall, I view this class as a springboard into both my foray
into graduate school and ultimately the professional work force. I plan on refining my resume,
becoming more acclimated to the career and resource center, and to gain a better understanding
on how what I have learned here translates to the real world, and how to optimize that transition,
whether it be through practicing job interview etiquette or through improving my attempts to
write professionally.
I am now in the process of graduating from Radford University, and thus am planning for
my immediate future come this May. I am to the point where I do not feel as if the level of
education I have currently is enough for a lot of the dream jobs for which I am aspiring. I am
planning on taking a year or two to earn either a Masters Degree or the European equivalent of a
Postgraduate diploma. Ideally, I would also like to join some immersion program for some time
where I can learn to speak a foreign language, namely either Korean, German, Russian, or one of
the Western European Romance languages. I think that it would make me more competitive in
the particular job market I am interested in, but most importantly it would enable me to become a
worldlier citizen than before. I value being able to communicate with people and being able to
express myself succinctly, and learning other languages just empowers me enough to be able to
do that in different circumstances.

I like to learn about topics regarding national security, whether that be through the lens of
international relations, disaster management, or mitigation of terrorism. I am currently in the
process of reviewing several different international schools in which I could learn more about the
aforementioned subject matter, and hopefully carry that knowledge into a career with a
governmental organization or an internationally-focused NGO. My dream job would be to
become a diplomat, where I would directly aid in the maintenance of a working stable
relationship between states, with the United States of America being my home state. I am also
aspiring to work for the Department of Defense or State Department in working on the research
and application behind minimizing the violent radicalization of American citizens. The last
career I am looking at is to work for the United Nations in some specific policy related
bureaucratic body, albeit, with no actual specific policy in mind yet.
In describing myself to someone who has not met me, I would say that I am a senior at
Radford University, majoring in Political Science. I would describe that I intent to earn a
Masters Degree with an international focus. I would attribute my interest in the subject to my
moving around throughout my childhood as my father was a captain in the Navy. This moving
around, specifically the years my family spent on the Pacific island of Guam, expanded my
scope of the world and society at a relatively early age, to the point where it shaped my desire to
become a citizen of the world, rather than just a citizen of the United States. In regards to my
interest in political science in general, I would point to my desire to make a difference and
change the world for the better. Considering states are some of the most important actors in the
international realm, I figured that a degree studying the nature of governments would aid me in
my desire to learn more about the system and how to improve it for the benefit of everyone from
within. In conclusion, I identify as an idealist at heart, but a realist in execution.