Upon earning one of the highly sought-after Fulbright scholarships, Valeriia Lozova came to the United States as an international student  from Ukraine. Valeriia earned a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Odessa University, at which time she began to develop her interest in nonproliferation and security through seminars and international conferences. She chose to come to the United States with the goal of enrolling in a program that focused on these interests – and SPIA’s Master of International Policy program was the perfect fit.

Through the MIP program, she was able to pursue projects such as developing a comprehensive article about the structure and internal workings of the European Atomic Energy Community. She is grateful to SPIA and the program for the way in which they conducted research and assisted students professionally. “Instead of academic research, we wrote policy research articles and briefs,” and the practical knowledge she gained truly set her apart.

Outside of her work, Valeriia enjoyed spending time with close friends and took full advantage of Georgia football game days. “Georgia football is like its own subculture – I loved it!” she recalls.

Following graduation, she worked in the Nuclear Policy program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace under Dr. James Acton. She is now serving as a Fulbright Visiting Researcher with the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, hoping to gain  more experience in the field before returning to Ukraine and Europe. She has been conducting research and collaborating with professionals on a paper discussing the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces treaty.

“Going forward, I hope to go beyond studying and writing papers, and make an international but practical impact.” Valeriia hopes to achieve this by pursuing an internship with the International Atomic Energy Agency and one day working for the agency, helping to create new safeguards  and to authenticate n ew equipment in a more efficient manner.