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Anya Daradics has long known that she wanted to work for the federal government, and eventually in management. No surprise then that such a goal-oriented person was on the lookout听for the right program to get her there. She found it in Dalhousie鈥檚 Master of Public Administration (Management).听

By the time she started听the program, Daradics was already well on her way to accomplishing听her early听career goals. A naval reservist since high school, she completed her听bachelor鈥檚 degree in 2010 in political science at Carleton University, then landed her first job working for听the听Canada Border Services听Agency听in Ottawa听as a program officer. From there she moved听to听Transport Canada as a Maritime Security Analyst, then听on to Public Safety Canada as听a program officer.听She also moved back to the Vancouver area.

Today she鈥檚 returned to Transport Canada as Emergency Management Program Manager, where she is听responsible for emergency management training, preparedness and听response听for Canada鈥檚 Pacific region.听It鈥檚 a job she loves in a setting that suits her. 鈥淚'm a very passionate federal government employee. I enjoy going to work every day probably because I'm a problem solver,鈥� says听Daradics.听

Given her commitment to public service, choosing a master鈥檚听program that听was听familiar to those听in her field was important. 鈥淚 chose听Dalhousie听because it was a good fit for working full time, and听because it was a program recognized as being very suitable for federal government employees.鈥澨鼶aradics began听her program in 2017,听and听says she鈥檚 liked the flexibility of blended learning to balance her busy work life, along with her family (she has a one-year-old听and听two step-children aged听9听and听13) and her responsibilities as an active naval reservist serving in middle management.听

Daradics says her favourite courses have included Intergovernmental Relations, Strategic听Management in the Public Sector and Policy Formulation and Analysis;听she liked the balance of academic and theoretical.听鈥淭he instructors did听such a great job of balancing academics, postgraduate education and听the听public service,鈥� says Daradics.听She points to one of her favourite professors, Lori Turnbull, as someone who听brings听examples of听problems听she鈥檇听encounter on the job听for students to dig into.听鈥淚f you're really passionate about your work,听it鈥檚 a听joy to be in the classroom working听under her because you feel like you're just trying to solve the problem of the day,鈥� says Daradics.

Daradics also liked the flexibility to work on assignments that related directly to her own work.听For听example,听in an elective course she took through the MBA program last term, she wrote a paper on change management in her current organization. She鈥檚 since听referenced听the paper听in meetings when the topic has come up. Finally, she enjoyed the听face-to-face听intensive听component听of the program, despite attending only one in Halifax (she turned the opportunity into a short vacation with her mother in the summer), and the others听in Alberta听and听Ottawa where she combined them with work trips.听鈥淭hey听were very rewarding times,听especially some of the intensives听when I've walked away thinking,听鈥榳ow, that was听such an engaging conversation.鈥櫶鼸veryone in the room cares so much about government,鈥� recalls Daradics.

Now that she has听graduated, Daradics听is听already recommending听the program听to others.听鈥淚've had a few colleagues investigate whether this program was suitable for them.听I tell them I听felt like it was worth my time and brought me benefit.听This program provides you with a really in-depth understanding,听from an academic perspective,听of听the way the federal government in Canada works,鈥� says Daradics. 鈥淓specially if you're at the management level, you don't always have the time to understand the way the government is supposed to run.听In an academic setting, you get the opportunity to really understand from a theoretical perspective the way it's supposed to work.

While she鈥檚 glad to wrap up听one element in her busy life,听Daradics听says the听benefits are worth the听balancing. 鈥淚f you can听juggle it all and prioritize the workload, it is really rewarding at the end that you've accomplished something听even as you are working on听your career.鈥澨�听

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