What courses/extracurriculars should I take to pursue a degree at Georgetown and a career in the C.I.A?Answered
I’m currently in 8th grade. The courses I took/taking are: Honors Spanish 1, Algebra 1, Scientific Inquiry and Design, Exploring Computer Science, Honors Spanish 2, Honors Integrated Math 2, English 1, Honors Biology, and Art 1. I also compete in high school debate, won awards, etc, and the only middle schooler in a high school student council for debaters all over the city. I’m fluent in English and Korean. I also want to learn Russian/Mandarin/Japanese/French or at least 1 or 2. I want to go to Georgetown to get a Bachelor’s in International Relations maybe and work as a Directorate of Operations Language Officer for the C.I.A. What courses and extracurriculars should I take to go to Georgetown and pursue my dream career?
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2 answers
Hi @hannahchae22
You are on your way and props to you for being such a good student. You are doing way more than most 8th graders.
Remember that college students on average change their majors 3 times before graduation so while you have a clear goal right now, it's best to hedge your bets and not be in too deep with a specific major at this point in your middle school career.
Picking a major now as a 13/14-year-old makes no sense for the college admissions process. Since Georgetown is a very difficult college to get into with 90% failing to get accepted, keep in mind that you need to apply to 10 to 20 schools even if Gtown is your top choice.
My advice to you is the following:
-Take the most challenging classes you can and get good grades in them GPA and Course rigor are the #1 and #2 most important things.
-If you want to study int'l relations, then you want to take AP European History, AP US History, and AP Government and Politics. To prepare for understand languages, I would pick either AP Chinese or AP Japanese and start taking level 1,2,3, now through 11th grade. To prepare yourself for future lab work in the C.I.A. I would take AP Computer Science and do well in AP Chem and AP Bio.
-For Extracurriculars - I would try to get a leadership position in Model UN, Debate team, and if your school offers this, Constitutional Law competitions. The ability to argue well and use your voice is paramount to thriving in a government position.
If these things conflict with your current schedule, then make adjustments. For instance, I think taking Japanese or Chinese might be more useful so maybe switching languages.
To add to the other answers, I recommend choosing Russian and/or Mandarin for the languages you study. These languages are what the US Government refers to as "Critical Languages," since having personnel who are fluent in them is critical for national defense. The CIA, Georgetown, and employers in the international relations space will all value Russian and Mandarin fluency more than the other options you listed.
Take AP Chinese if it is offered at your school, and if not, try self-studying and counting it as an extracurricular. Self-study will most likely be your only option for Russian too. Besides that, continue to perfect your Korean until you are able to understand high-level works, such as university research papers, formal government documents, and technical reports - that will be seen as valuable by the CIA. What they would appreciate most of all would be if you could master North Korean vocabulary and accents, though of course that is a challenging ask!
As for extracurriculars, language tutoring would be a good start. Writing about international affairs topics that interest you is another strong idea, either through your own blog or having your articles published in a journal/newspaper for high school students. Lastly, the US Navy Sea Cadet Corps (USNSCC) would also make you stand out. It is a Navy-funded program that trains high school students in leadership, marching, military science, and more. Once you complete a 2-week boot camp, you could attend a summer training about military intelligence and other related topics. If your main interest is in the CIA/DoD, it would be extremely valuable.
Hope this helps!
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