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Shannon O'Rourke, MPA 2010: Second year MPA student with a concentration in Environmental Policy Studies
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Shannon O’Rourke is a second year Master of Public Administration student with an Environmental Policy Studies concentration. A Californian born and raised, prior to coming to SIPA she led media campaigns focused on Western energy and climate change issues -- when she wasn’t out hugging trees or using “dude” to emphasize a point.
Although she enjoyed her time working behind a desk on these important issues, she also managed to indulge her wanderlust (in a productive way, of course) through stints volunteering at an eco-reserve in Mexico. Upon graduating from Columbia, she plans to pursue a career in public service, working to develop energy policy focused on mitigating the impacts of climate change.
How did you obtain your internship?
"I actually obtained my internship from another SIPA student – he was my POP TA. We were both from San Francisco and focused on energy policy. I had expressed my interest in working for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), and it turned out that he had actually worked there before coming to SIPA. So, one thing led to another, and countless emails and follow up calls later, I had an internship!"
Can you please talk about your internship experience?
"After a rewarding first year of graduate study, I spent the past summer working in the Power Division of the SFPUC, on its municipal community power program, CleanPowerSF. As part of this endeavor, I researched and began the draft of a request for proposals for the city’s effort to develop renewable energy sources and increase energy efficiency within the City and County of San Francisco. I also had the opportunity to conduct in depth research on California energy policy and regulation, and to work with experts on electric utility issues."
Can you comment specifically on some exciting things about your concentration?
"I’ve been very happy with the Environmental Policy Studies (now combined into Energy and Environment concentration) concentration. Coming to SIPA, I was very interested in energy policy as a vehicle for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Being that I was focused on energy, but through a sustainability lens, I was torn between the energy and environment tracks. I finally decided on the Environmental Policy concentration because of the flexibility in requirements; so many of the energy classes focus on sustainability and vice versa, that it was easy fulfilling my academic interests and the core requirements. My only complaint has been that there are too many fascinating classes, it’s been a challenge settling on just a few each semester."
Can you comment on the quantitative rigor in the curriculum?
"With a background in Communications, and not having taken math since high school, I was very nervous about the quantitative rigor of the curriculum. My advice for incoming SIPA students is: don’t worry, it’ll be okay. Economics and statistics were challenging, but never in an overwhelming way.
I’d say my experiences in these classes were the most rewarding, because I was operating outside of my comfort zone. I was forced to work hard to succeed, but it was so satisfying to see the studying pay off and in the end found that there wasn’t all that much to be intimidated about. The point of coming to SIPA is to learn new things and build new skill sets, not to reaffirm that you are in fact good at what you already knew you were good at."
What advice would you give a first-year student?
"School and classes are great, and enjoy them, but do as many internships as you can! I have been amazed at the access to organizations and people you can get because you are willing to work for very little or for free and because you come from a school like SIPA. Not only have I gained invaluable experience, which is now reflected on my résumé, but I have also found that actually working in the field I was studying helped me be more thoughtful about my studies and to engage with the concepts presented in class in a deeper way.
And while I believe this can be classified as irony, interning while taking time off from work to study at SIPA has definitely been one of the more valuable takeaways from the school experience. Because of my internships, I feel very focused on the kind of work I want to be doing and the kind of organization I want to be doing it at once I leave SIPA."
[July 2010]