Antoinette Hurtado, a veteran diplomat with the U.S. Department of State, visited the University of Nevada, Reno last week to talk with students on campus, including engineering and information technology majors and first-generation students, about State Department careers and internships. We talked about possibilities.
Hurtado is the State Department’s diplomat in the Southwest, where he focuses on recruiting for the department in Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. Her work travels to university campuses, community colleges, military bases, and wherever future State Department employees are likely to be found.
Her message: The State Department needs all kinds of specialized skills, not just students with degrees in international studies or foreign languages.
Hurtado said, “Probably 99.9 percent of the major fields of study would be compatible with a career at the State Department,” which offers not only a career as a domestic civil servant, but also overseas postings in the Department of Foreign Affairs (diplomatic corps). He pointed out that it was provided. “You don’t need to speak a foreign language to have a career in the diplomatic service. The State Department will teach you the language you need wherever you are sent.”
Speaking to students, faculty and university leaders, Hurtado also emphasized that a career in the State Department is more than just a high-paying job with great benefits.
“This is an incredible adventure, a once-in-a-lifetime adventure,” Hurtado said. “You get paid to travel the world. You get paid to make the world a better place and live a purposeful life.”
During his more than 20-year career, Mr. Hurtado has served in Australia, Brazil, Afghanistan and Rome, and his work at the U.S. Embassy in the Holy See gave him the opportunity to meet with Pope Francis.
In his current role as one of the State Department’s 17 diplomats stationed in the United States, Mr. Hurtado pays particular attention to developing the department’s diverse workforce.
“We want to show the world a face that represents all of America,” she said. “We also want to benefit from a healthy diversity of perspectives from people with a variety of personal, academic and professional backgrounds, from law enforcement and management to political science. .”
Joining the State Department may mean getting a job right after graduation. Some students start out with internships while in school or fellowships after graduation, but most internships and fellowships are paid. (For more information about careers, internships, and fellowships, contact Hurtado through the State Department webpage or LinkedIn. You can review available opportunities on the State Department webpage.
Among the interns is Leslie Perez, a third-year student in the university’s international relations program. She applied after attending a Zoom information session hosted by Hurtado.
While Perez hopes the internship will open the door to a career in the U.S. diplomatic service, he said the part-time internship also taught him skills such as building professional relationships, planning events, and conducting research. spoke. She finds this work very meaningful.
“As a first-generation college student, just hearing about these opportunities can be life-changing,” Perez said. “I want to inspire others, especially the Latino and first-generation communities, to participate in these transformative experiences.”
