The genuine interest in different cultures and peoples of all over the world has always been the driving force behind my choices. After graduating in Anthropology (with a Major in Islamic Finance), my dream was to work for international organizations but I still needed to strengthen my knowledge of quantitative (mathematics, econometrics, etc..) and economic subjects in order to better apply anthropology to economics in developing countries. MESCI offered me the right tools to accomplish my goal. Thanks to professional teachers and lots of efforts at home, I was able to fill my gaps.

After a 7-month internship at the UNDP Egypt, upon returning to Rome from Cairo I was fortunate to be offered a position as Administrative Manager and Lecturer at the Summer School Islamic Finance in Europe (CEIS). Afterwards, I was appointed as a Vice President of Micro Progress Onlus and I got a Research Graduate Assistant (GRA) contract at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Currently I am a World Bank consultant for the Adriatic Sea Environment Program (ASEP) and my tasks are collecting data and modeling activities of the Adriatic countries, as well as evaluating pollution internal and external effects, and costs and benefits of different intervention policies.

Surely, then, MESCI was my turning point in life. Afterwards, I worked as a Research Graduate Assistant at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and as a World Bank Short Term Consultant within the Adriatic Sea Environment Program (ASEP). Currently, I am a PhD student in Economics at the University of Rome Tor Vergata and a Junior Gender Specialist at the World Bank in Washington.

website: valentinacostasite.wordpress.com