February 2020 International Studies Alumni Spotlight – Rachael Hancock
Each month we ask an alumni member to share how their International Studies major or minor has influenced their path after graduating from the University of Michigan. Check out the archive of past alumni spotlights.
February 2020
Rachael Hancock
BA International Studies (International Security, Norms and Cooperation); BA Political Science; BA French ‘13
Hometown: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
University of Michigan Affiliations: AOP
“Getting an International Studies major was the perfect fit for my interests during college. I studied abroad twice while at Michigan: once for a summer in Geneva, Switzerland, and once for a semester in Dakar, Senegal. Thanks to my PICS major I had the time to take all of the French classes I wanted and even add a third major during my senior year. I chose PICS because it offered me the most flexible and versatile courses to pick from.
After graduating, I moved to Washington, DC and worked at a legal non-profit for two years. In 2015, I applied to law schools and decided to target schools that offered joint degrees with a focus in international law. Having a demonstrated interest in international issues helped me write a convincing personal statement for these programs.
I graduated from law school in May 2018 with a JD/LLM in international and comparative law. I moved back to DC and worked as an associate at an international law firm in the international arbitration practice group. I'm currently clerking in the District of New Jersey and hope to move back to DC and continue working in international law sometime soon!”