Alumnus Samantha Grills (MAGG ’12) shares her journey studying at the Balsillie School of International Affairs and her internship with Amnesty International Canada where she worked on their Women’s Human Rights Campaign. Specializing in International Microfinance and Microenterprise, Samantha has earned an Aga Khan Foundation Canada International Youth Fellowship and is currently working in Bangladesh for eight months.
Read more about Samantha’s story in her interview with Alumni Relations below.
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Why did you choose to study at the Balsillie School of International Affairs?
I chose to study at the Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA) because the MA in Global Governance (MAGG) is the only one of its kind in Canada. The interdisciplinary design of the program is unique and helps to bridge multiple perspectives on a wide variety of issues related to globalization. The caliber of professors and fellows at the BSIA, the small cohort size, and the school’s partnership with the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) all helped to make my decision an easy one.
Can you tell us about your internship with Amnesty International Canada working on their Women's Human Rights Campaign?
My internship with Amnesty International Canada was a four-month long opportunity working full-time at the national office in Ottawa. During this time I worked primarily on the issue of violence against women, writing policy briefs and compiling trends and statistics related to violence against women in Canada and internationally. These internships are one of the unique components of the MAGG, as each student is assisted in finding a placement with an organization in line with their areas of interest.
You completed your graduate research in the area of microfinance and women's empowerment. With your background, how do you feel about UWaterloo's commitment to the HeForShe campaign?
I am very happy to see UWaterloo becoming a champion of the UN Women’s HeForShe Campaign. If meaningful advancements towards gender equity are to be achieved, an increased involvement of men and boys is essential. UWaterloo’s commitment to HeForShe has the potential to create positive change for students, faculty and staff, and can help raise awareness around gender equity issues.
You’re now one of five young Canadians in the International Microfinance and Microenterprise (IMM) stream to earn an Aga Khan Foundation Canada International Youth Fellowship. What will this entail?
Aga Khan Foundation Canada has been awarding International Youth Fellowships since 1989, with over 400 Canadians having received fellowships to travel and work overseas since the program’s establishment. Out of 24 recipients for 2015/16, I am one of five accepted through the IMM stream. My placement is as a Technical Officer with CARE Bangladesh working out of their head office in Dhaka. All of the fellows spent a month in Ottawa taking part in an intensive training seminar and we will now be spending eight months working overseas in our individual placements across ten different countries in Africa and Asia.
The Aga Khan Foundation fellowship requires you to move to Bangladesh, how do you feel about moving and working internationally?
I requested Bangladesh as my placement country of preference because of my interest in the use of microfinance as a tool for poverty alleviation and women’s empowerment. Bangladesh is a hub for microfinance institutions and other alternative savings solutions, and the first-hand knowledge and experience that I will get from taking part in this opportunity will be invaluable. While I am anxious about adjusting to a very different daily life, I am excited for the opportunity to work with CARE and to experience living in a new part of the world.
Was there anything or anyone during your time at UWaterloo that influenced you to get to where you are today?
The support and friendship of my fellow MAGGs and MIPPs at the BSIA continues to be a strong influence, as many of us are working towards careers in the area of international development. Dr. Andrew Thompson helped to facilitate my internship with Amnesty International Canada and he, along with Dr. William Coleman, supervised my Major Research Paper, the focus of which helped me to receive this fellowship.
What advice do you have for recent graduates?
I think the best advice I could give is to persevere. Finding a job in many fields as a recent graduate is incredibly hard right now and the most important thing is to not give up on finding the right opportunity for you.
