Headshot of Elita waring a black button up in front of a grey backdrop.

Elita Yunanda

Admission Ambassador

Headshot of Elita waring a black button up in front of a grey backdrop.

Elita Yunanda (she/her/hers)
Program: MPA-DP
Concentration: Development Practice
Hometown: Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Elita Yunanda ’27 is a second-year Master of Public Administration in Development Practice (MPA-DP) student at Columbia SIPA. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, with a focus on International Relations, Negotiation, and Diplomacy, from UPN Veteran Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Elita has over a decade of experience in international development, with expertise in strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, and policy advocacy. She has worked extensively on EU-funded cooperation programmes across ASEAN, supporting initiatives in higher education, regional cooperation, and multilateral fora.

During her summer placement, she worked as a Research Analyst at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), contributing to the 2027 Asia-Pacific SDG Partnership Report. She also supported the EU Delegation to the United Nations in New York through her consultancy work.

As a recipient of the Indonesian government’s fully funded LPDP scholarship, Elita looks forward to connecting with prospective students and sharing her SIPA experience, including navigating the application and scholarship process and transitioning to graduate school in New York City.