WINTER 2012 - National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and ...

Class Rooms
GRADUATE SCHOOL
I was uncertain what to do after earning my undergraduate degree. So far,
college was the only thing I had done well in life, so I went to graduate school to
continue my studies in political science and public administration (hereinafter,
PA). I completed my MA and PhD supported by fellowships, research
assistantships, teaching assistantships, and a Ford Foundation Fellowship offered
through West Virginia University. The Ford grant allowed me to spend one
academic year interning across the state in Charleston, the capital city.
I thrived in my MA and PhD courses, probably because advanced study
was even more unstructured than undergraduate school. Except for the doctoral
prelims and an Introduction to Statistics class offered through the math
department, there were no tests, just self-directed reading assignments and a
major research paper or two in each course due at term’s end. Class attendance
was never required, which, like undergraduate school, further reduced the
formality. I received one B grade my first term and A’s in all my remaining
graduate classes throughout my MA and doctoral studies.
I completed the Ford Foundation Fellowship in the academic year between
my MA and PhD studies. This fellowship allowed me a comfortable, tax-free
monthly stipend and tuition waiver. I was responsible for reading 10 assigned
classic texts about government each term, all borrowed from the library.
Although so far I had learned a lot about politics and administration in
my undergraduate and graduate courses, the fellowship allowed me to observe
these subjects in practice for an academic year. I was officially assigned to the
State Tax Department, but was given considerable time to observe both houses
of the legislature and the state supreme court. The chair of the senate judiciary
committee allowed me to sit in on its executive sessions, where the real action
happens since only committee members are present; the press and public cannot
attend these meetings. On the other side of the capitol building, I befriended
a representative from the House of Delegates who took me under his wing and
continuously offered his insights about the politics of the judicial, legislative, and
administrative branches. Priceless.
The internship solidified my interest in studying, researching, writing about,
and teaching government. During this year of applied study, as some people
call it, I realized, first, our elected and appointed public officials are far more
conscientious, competent, and knowledgeable than popular sentiment allows.
Second, I quickly came to appreciate that all those books I had read about the
public sector were extremely helpful in understanding government incentives
and actions. Working-class folks often talk of people being “book smart,” thereby
implying that learning things by reading leads you away from understanding the
“real world.” My internship taught me the fallacy of this thinking; it is another
class-related myth. Instead, I recognized the strong connection between what
I had learned in my courses and reading assignments and what was happening
Journal of Public Affairs Education 33