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Alumni Network

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AFTER THE DEGREE

WHERE DO YOU GO?

Not only do alumni successfully jump start productive and fulfilling careers through TAM, they stay connected. We believe this global network of graduates is one of TAM’s greatest strengths. Use this page to browse specific profiles, read about the alumni advisory board, and see how well our graduates do in the workforce. If you are a prospective student, let us know and we will work to get you in touch with alumni who can provide some tips as you consider TAM.

Alumni Profiles

TAM graduates work in a number of different professional fields. Their career paths are diverse and highly interesting. Some work for think tanks and NGOs such as the Bertelsmann Foundation, the Goethe Institute and the Brookings Institution. Others work for their federal government in foreign-service capacities as well as for entities such as the Pentagon, the US Department of Energy, the Labor Department, and USAID. Meanwhile, some TAM grads work for private firms such as lobbying shops, airlines or risk-management companies. Finally, another segment of our graduates go on for PhDs, JDs or Business credentials and / or work on university campuses as faculty members, instructors or administrators. Please read about some of our graduates below.

Esha, Class of ’15 – Alumni Spotlight

Interview by Mackenzie Hansen, EURO-TAM EXCEL@Carolina student

Esha Grover Kaur Sarai ‘15 is an International Broadcaster at Voice of America (VOA) based in Washington, D.C. Her career at VOA has spanned four and a half years. While completing her TransAtlantic Masters (TAM) degree, Esha studied institutional organization and theory surrounding the European Union and formulated her Master’s thesis based on the literature on immigrant assimilation and race relations in the EU. Her recent work has largely focused on covering the 2020 US presidential election. 

TAM ADVISORY BOARD

In early 2014, TAM established an External Advisory Board made up of program graduates. This Board had its first annual meetings on March 28 and 29, 2014, in Chapel Hill and has met every spring since. A fall meeting now takes place in October in DC. Board members serve as program ambassadors and stay informed of TAM developments. They assist with recruiting efforts, marketing strategies, internship and job placement, fundraising and community building. Two satellite TAM Boards in Berlin and London have also formed. TAM alumni involvement with the program makes us strong and proud. And the expertise of our graduates has been an invaluable source of inspiration and practical assistance.

Please feel free to contact the TAM Board with questions about the program and career paths afterwards: tam@unc.edu

Kyle studied in Berlin. He then accepted a Fulbright research/teaching position in Vienna. Kyle moved to DC and has worked for more than a decade in counterterrorism (CT) and countering violent extremism (CVE) policy, operations, analysis, and interagency and international CT/CVE coordination for the FBI, Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development, and other U.S. Government agencies. He currently serves as a CVE Senior Advisor with USAID.

Kevin is a 2009 TAM graduate and the Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs for Apex Clean Energy, a nationwide renewable energy developer headquartered in Charlottesville, VA. He previously worked for the National Audubon Society and for a North Carolina-based public affairs firm. He received a B.A. from UNC’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication in 2007. .

John was in the first TAM class. He studied at UNC, in Paris and in Bath. Immediately after TAM, John worked in DC for Cassidy & Associates, a large government affairs firm with international interests. Along with several Cassidy colleagues and former Capitol Hill staff, John now works as a VP for Cornerstone Government Affairs, a lobby shop. The firm now includes www.capstonedc.com which is a political analysis group aimed at the investor community.

Kimmy’s undergraduate degree is from UNC-Chapel Hill. She majored in International Studies (International Politics focus, East Asian concentration) and minored in Chinese. Kimmy studied in Amsterdam as a TAM student and completed her thesis on a comparison of water governance structures in Louisiana and the Netherlands. After graduation in 2011, Kimmy worked as a management consultant for ScottMadden, Inc., a mid-size consulting firm that specializes in the energy industry and utility clients. After some focused projects in IT support and regulatory controls, Kimmy took a job with Carlisle and Gallagher Consulting Group, which focuses on IT implementations and clients within the financial sector. She now works at consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. Kimmy has also recently gotten a dog, Parker, named after her freshman year dorm at UNC.

Michelle is a 2005 TAM graduate who studied overseas in Paris. She works in freelance project management, writing, and editing. Currently, Michelle is leading a project for UNC’s Innovate Carolina office to design and develop a digital tool that supports faculty entrepreneurs as they translate their innovative ideas into real-world impact. She is also an editor for the Center for Innovation Strategy and Policy at SRI International, an independent, nonprofit research institute based in Washington, D.C. Michelle has served as Chair of the Board of the Raleigh/Wake Partnership to End Homelessness, she currently volunteers with the Hope Center in support of youth in the foster system, and she continues to engage as a member of this Board. She lives in Raleigh.  

Wilson studied in Berlin after being awarded FLAS funding for the study of the Turkish language. After graduating from UNC, he returned to the United States and most recently worked in investment banking and venture capital before returning to UNC once again. He is currently studying for his MBA at the Kenan-Flagler School of Business and is scheduled to graduate in 2022.

Dale studied in Bremen as a TAM student. Prior to TAM, Dale worked in corporate operations at PepsiCo before pursuing a degree in Economics. While he was in TAM, he also worked as a research assistant and program assistant for the Center for European Studies, working on a variety of projects related to the Euro Major, TAM program, and educational outreach. After graduating TAM in 2018, he accepted a position at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, where he now works as Associate Director of Program Development, designing and launching new degree programs. He also supports the school’s Global Initiative, most recently taking a group of over 50 MBA students to Seoul, where they completed consulting projects with a number of global companies, including FedEx, Philips, and Boeing. He is currently preparing to launch a new graduate degree program that will take students on a global business experience to Singapore.

Erin, a Texas native, is part of TAM’s Class of 2006. She studied in Prague and Bath. After TAM, Erin relocated to DC and worked initially for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. She then joined the U.S. Department of State as part of the Foreign Service for ten years. As of 2020, she is part of Raytheon Technologies’ International Government Relations team as their Director of Foreign Policy.

Megan graduated from the TAM Program in 2014. In her second year in TAM, Megan was a Dacor Bacon House Foundation Fellow. She studied overseas in Amsterdam and now works in DC as an Account Manager for FiscalNote, an Enterprise B2B SaaS platform helping companies assess and manage global policy risk and opportunity. Her previous work experience includes stints on Chevron’s International Government Affairs team; as Europe Program Manager at the Atlantic Council, and internships with the US Embassy in Cyprus and the Delegation of the EU in the US.

Justin is Professor of Sociology of Education in the Institute of Education & Society at the University of Luxembourg. His comparative institutional analyses of educational systems chart persistence and change in special and inclusive education, in vocational training and higher education, and in science and research policy. After coordinating international dissertation fellowship programs at the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), New York, he was Research Fellow of the Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin; Lecturer at the University of Göttingen; T.H. Marshall Fellow at the LSE; Project Director at the Social Science Research Center Berlin (WZB); and Visiting Professor of Sociology at Leibniz University Hannover.

Camilo studied in Madrid and interned with CNN-Spain. He started his career in D.C. as a political fundraising intern on Capitol Hill. He then worked for the World Resources Institute for several years, then with Human Rights Campaign, and later for CPA, a boutique events shop that organizes special events around the greater Washington, D.C. area. Camilo then assumed the role of Event Strategist at the Brookings Institution in DC. He is now the Senior Director of External Relations at Brookings.

Aberdeen works for the US Department of Defense. She is a 2003 graduate of the TAM Program. After completing the core module in Chapel Hill, NC, she studied at Sciences Po, while also interning at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, then finishing the program in Bath, England. Abby deployed to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq in 2003-04 as a Defense Contractor. After her deployment, she worked at the National Archives, declassifying documents for public release and reviewing book manuscripts written by prominent American figures who had once had security clearances. Ms. Sabo joined DIA as a government civilian in July 2007 as a Foreign Disclosure Officer. She was able to use her French skills, honed during the TAM program, and she assisted the U.S. Embassy in Paris by translating critical information. At the time, there were no analyst vacancies on the Europe Team, so Abby was encouraged to begin covering West Africa as a Political-Military All Source Intelligence Analyst for DIA from 2008-2011. She was then selected to work as a Defense Liaison Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Niamey, Niger from 2011-2013. Ms. Sabo received the Defense Meritorious Civilian Service Medal (the second highest award a DIA Civilian can receive) from the DIA Director at Agency HQ’s in Dec. 2013 for superior efforts during two years in Niger, successfully responding to unprecedented challenges in one of the most austere environments in the world. Ms. Sabo was selected for a second tour as a Defense Liaison Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon from 2013-2015. Ms. Sabo received a Franklin Award from the U.S. Ambassador to Cameroon at an Embassy-wide award ceremony in July 2015 for superior efforts assisting a Foreign Service Officer in a crisis situation..

Desirée is from Staten Island, N.Y. She graduated from NYU magna cum laude in May 2006 with majors in Honors History and Italian Studies and a minor in Fine Arts. As an undergraduate, she focused her coursework and research on interactions between different immigrant and racial groups within the United States. As a TAM student, she studied in Siena, focusing her research on migration and multiculturalism within the EU. In 2008, Desirée was named a Presidential Management Fellow and now works at the U.S. Department of State.

Garrett studied in Paris as a TAM student and earned the UNC degree. He now works as Senior Director for European Affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where he also helps manage the U.S.-UK Business Council. Previously, he was Associate Director for the Atlantic Council’s Global Business and Economics Program. He gained previous work experience on Capitol Hill working for former Senator Jon Kyl.

FRIENDS OF TAM

DONATE TO THIS WORK

Donate Online

Donations to TAM come in many forms.

For instance, we’re very grateful to those who host TAM students during fall-break site visits in DC, let us know about job and internship opportunities relevant to our students and graduates, spread the word about our offerings and communicate with prospective applicants, communicate with the TAM Office with concerns, questions, and updates, and give talks in our Friday lecture series. All of these things contribute to the mission of TAM.

We also welcome financial donations.

Here are a few of the ways in which your donation could be used:

$25,000 – full tuition for a double-degree-seeking TAM student

$20,000 – full tuition for a UNC degree-seeking student

$10,000 – full tuition for one year.

$7,500 – living stipend for TAM student for one year.

$5,000 – one semester of tuition.

$3,000 – full travel scholarship for two TAM students to get to Europe for their overseas study.

$1,500 – full travel scholarship for one TAM student

$1,000 or less – partial travel scholarship

$500 – book and supplies stipend

$300 – overseas university student fees

$250 – student visa fees

Our gift account is called “Friends of the TransAtlantic Masters Program.” If you would be interested in contributing to TAM this way, please see the gift-giving options above. If you choose to donate online, please be attentive to the drop-down options to designate the Friends of TAM Account from a list of choices.

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