Working World

Are you looking for a career with professional rewards and personal satisfaction? Perhaps you'd like to find meaningful employment in the field of international relations? Working World is the perfect resource for making sound career choices, and is particularly valuable for those interested in exploring a career in international education, exchange, and development.

Sherry Mueller, president emeritus of a large nonprofit organization with an international focus, and Mark Overmann, a young professional on his way up, serve as spirited guidance counselors and offer valuable insight on launching a career, not just landing a job. The two authors—representing contrasting personalities, levels of experience, and different generations—engage in an entertaining dialogue designed to highlight alternative approaches to the same destination: making a difference in the world.

With a rich mix of anecdotes and advice, the two authors present their individual perspectives on career development: identifying your cause, the art of networking, the value of mentors, and careers as "continuous journeys." Mueller and Overmann push job seekers to challenge assumptions about what it means to pursue a career in international relations and to recognize that the path to career success is rarely straight.

To help the job seeker chart the best course, Working World provides specific resources including annotated lists of selected organizations, websites, and further reading. Profiles of twelve professionals, from promising young associates to presidents and CEOs, illustrate the book's main topics. Each professional provides insight into his or her career choices, distills lessons learned, and offers practical advice about building a career in international affairs. All of these resources were chosen specifically to help job seekers map the next steps toward the internship, job, or other opportunity that will give shape to the career they envision.

Sherry L. Mueller, Ph.D., had her first international experience as a student on an Experiment in International Living program in Germany. Several years later she led an Experiment group to the then-USSR. Her work abroad ranges from serving as a State Department speaker on NGO leadership in Saudi Arabia to teaching English in Brazil. She currently serves as president emeritus of the National Council for International Visitors, a national network of program agencies based in Washington DC, and more than 90 community-member organizations throughout the United States.

Mark Overmann made his first trip abroad during college to study in France. Following his graduation from the University of Notre Dame, Mark spent a year in Northeast China teaching English and studying Chinese. He subsequently earned his master's degree in International Communication from American University, and then worked as a program associate at the National Council for International Visitors. Mark currently serves as the Director of College Communications at Georgetown University, where he works closely with the university's international exchange programs, specifically those with China.