Hi! My name is Ielnaz, I’m a second year masters student in Public Policy, focusing on international development. I completed the first two years of my undergraduate work at UC Irvine as a biology major, then transferred to NYU where I continued as a pre-med student and earned my B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies. During the summer before my senior year of undergrad, I did a clinical rotation internship in Ecuador with an organization called Child Family Health International. This eye-opening experience led me to realize that I was more interested in international health and development programs, policies, and research, and so I decided that rather than continue on to medical school, I would pursue a career in international development.

After graduating I traveled for 5 months in Europe and the Middle East, and then returned to New York where I worked for the China Trade Development Council for 1 year. Afterwards, I traveled throughout Central America for one summer, working on my Spanish and doing independent research and volunteer work. When I returned to the States, I moved back to Southern California (where I grew up) and worked first at a law firm for a little while, and then at an international non-profit organization focused on developing education opportunities for under-privileged children in various regions of the world. I then began my masters program in Public Policy here at UCLA, and am very, very happy.

I love to travel, study languages, read great books, watch good films, exercise, and spend time with friends and family. I love to share my experiences and talk to you about your plans for you undergraduate careers and beyond, so feel free to come talk to me anytime.

Email me at ikashefipour@college.ucla.edu