At least some courses in the major should be designed around analytical techniques that are in demand by potential employers of B.A./B.S. degree holders. In the context of my courses, this means I teach research design, statistics and data analysis techniques widely used in the consulting, interest group and social science research communities in Washington.
Many of my undergraduate advisees have found work in the Washington policy community and in government. Others have worked their way into graduate school or law school. Two of my best undergraduate students completed Ph.D. programs at Harvard and the University of Colorado, Boulder, and are now tenured faculty. Recent graduates have also pursued Ph.D. level work at University of California, San Diego; University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; Ohio State University and the University of Wisconsin. In the last ten years, undergraduate advisees have found their way into many highly visible law schools, including UCLA, Georgetown University, George Washington University, University of Maryland, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Notre Dame.
Maryland undergraduates have taken their training from my various courses and applied it in the fields of legislative redistricting, public health, information management, disaster management, data journalism, business, political campaigning, and public policy.
I have coauthored research papers and books with a number of graduate students who are now in successful careers in academia, government and the private sector. These include SoRelle Gaynor (University of Virginia); Celeste Lay (Tulane University); Josh Dyck (University of Massachusetts, Lowell); Shanna Pearson-Merkowitz (University of Maryland, Public Policy); Rebecca Thorpe (University of Washington); John McTague (Towson University); Laura Hussey (University of Maryland, Baltimore County); David Armstrong (Western University (Ontario)); Jason Schuknecht (Westat); and Peter Burns (Soka University).
