Career Path of a Political Science Professor at California Lutheran University
Kiku's career path was non-linear, starting with a double major in political science and Spanish, followed by an internship in Mexico and unrelated jobs before pursuing graduate studies. The decision to attend seminary at George Fox Evangelical Seminary, to deepen their understanding of religion before researching "how religion influences different countries' government," ultimately led to a PhD in political science and their current position as an Assistant Professor.
Career Exploration, Higher Education, International Experience, Religious Studies, Political Science
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Kiku Huckle
Assistant Professor of Political Science
California Lutheran University
Western Washington University, 2000
MATS - George Fox Evangelical Seminary; MA - Political Science, Villanova; MA and PhD Political Science - University of Washington
Spanish & Other Languages, Political Science, American Studies
Education
Education
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School, Student Athlete
Video Highlights
1. Kiku's double major in political science and Spanish provided a strong foundation for her career.
2. Her internship in Mexico, while not directly related to her current role, helped her explore career options and gain valuable experience.
3. Her decision to attend seminary to study religion before pursuing her PhD demonstrates a commitment to in-depth research and understanding her chosen field of study, religion and politics
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Please include any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
Sure. I had a double major in undergrad: political science and Spanish. After I graduated, I did an internship in Mexico with state-level political parties.
Ironically, that's not directly tied to what I'm doing now, but that was the path I took. I wasn't sure about graduate school at that time, which was part of why I did the internship. When I returned from Mexico, I had a series of jobs unrelated to academia while I tried to figure out what I wanted to do.
Once I decided I was really interested in religion and politics, my research area right now, I started going back to school. I originally thought I would do a comparative study, looking at how religion influences governments in different countries.
Because of that, I decided to go to seminary. I'm born and raised Catholic, and I thought I should learn more about my own religion before I started to learn about other people's and make assessments about how those religions were being expressed. I went to seminary at George Fox Evangelical Seminary in Portland, Oregon.
From there, I went to Villanova University for a master's in political science. At that point, I realized I really wanted to teach and be a professor. So after that, I went to the University of Washington in Seattle for my PhD in political science.
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