Nebraska U helps Stratmoen pursue national security career

From watching “Prison Minds” to collaborating in a counterterrorism grasp’s program in Washington, D.C., the College of Nebraska–Lincoln helped Emily Stratmoen understand her dream of working with worldwide crime.

“I knew what I needed to do for the reason that eighth grade,” Stratmoen mentioned. “I knew I needed to enter felony justice. At first, I needed to be like Spencer Reid from ‘Prison Minds,’ but it surely has advanced since.”

Hailing from Brookings, South Dakota, Stratmoen attributes her change in course to the professors within the college’s nationwide safety research minor program. And now, because the undergraduate prepares to graduate from Nebraska U on Aug. 20, she’s planning to pursue her aim of being a counterthreat analyst by incomes her grasp’s diploma in counterterrorism and homeland safety coverage at American College in Washington, D.C.

“The second class I took for the minor, writing and briefing with professor Bettina Roundey, actually acquired me focused on nationwide safety,” Stratmoen mentioned. “We adopted a subject all the semester, after which we practiced writing totally different parts of briefs and it advanced over all the semester. So, in the long run, you had a full panel of briefs that you realize, in the event you have been in that sort of a job, can be offered to the Secretary of Protection or the Secretary of State.”

As a member of the pre-law program, Stratmoen was initially focused on working with worldwide legislation and crime.

“Worldwide crime is a really massive difficulty in at present’s world, particularly with terrorism and extremism,” she mentioned. “I’ve all the time been focused on how these teams perform and the way they perform these assaults.”

By way of a course for her main, Stratmoen wrote a pair of deep-dive papers on how the totally different teams perform. The mission fueled her curiosity within the subject.

“After taking that class I used to be wanting into what I may do subsequent since I’m graduating in three years,” she mentioned. “I needed to enter one thing that mixed my curiosity in worldwide affairs with nationwide safety and defending the nation. I discovered this program that would result in the place I wish to be, which is sitting within the workplace doing the entire studying, writing, intel and analysis. I wish to be the one who’s placing the items collectively and writing a short to alert everybody who must find out about these threats.”

Stratmoen found these pursuits not solely by coursework but in addition by caring professors.

“There are some professors that I discover to be actually inspiring and who actually helped me rather a lot,” she mentioned. “I give all of the credit score to Bettina as a result of she was the one who sort of understood my ardour for nationwide safety. She was all the time keen to assist regardless in the event you have been out with COVID or one thing like that, you might all the time simply Zoom together with her and he or she all the time gave tremendous useful suggestions on my work.”

Professor Julia McQuillian additionally inspired Stratmoen alongside the best way, and pushed her in the direction of graduate faculty.

“She was completely essentially the most encouraging professor I’ve had,” Stratmoen mentioned. “She’s all the time rooting for you and asking how she can assist. She cared for all of her college students and even with such a giant faculty and so many college students. She even wrote a letter of advice for me for graduate faculty purposes.”

As she prepares for the transition to American College this fall, Stratmoen is wanting ahead to the alternatives that being within the coronary heart of Washington will present. Considered one of them features a new gig — serving in a full-time place as a federal contractor working for the U.S. Marshals Service.

“There isn’t a higher place to review as a result of I’m surrounded by the entire companies,” she mentioned. “Homeland Safety is across the nook from my faculty. I believe the most effective half about this system although, which is rather a lot why I selected to go there’s the college are instructing on the aspect, however they’re working of their careers in the course of the day. The director of my program nonetheless works for the FBI. This system is about as much as the place they make your lessons so relevant and also you’re gaining expertise proper away.”

Whereas wanting ahead to subsequent steps, Stratmoen will stay related to Lincoln.

“It’s going to all the time be dwelling to me,” she mentioned.

Stratmoen attended the College of Nebraska–Lincoln due to its neighborhood, environment and college spirit. She labored to be concerned and was lively throughout campus by involvements in Dance Marathon, membership hockey, pre-law membership, Greek life and extra.

“I believe general my expertise at UNL has stemmed from the individuals,” she mentioned. “By way of a number of late nights and annoying days I surrounded myself with a very good group of individuals and I saved myself busy but it surely was nonetheless manageable.”

As she strikes ahead, Stratmoen is open to regardless of the future might maintain, whether or not that’s a job alternative in Washington and even attending legislation faculty.

“If I had gone anyplace else, I don’t suppose it might have been the identical for me,” she mentioned. “And I wouldn’t be going into grad faculty as a result of I wouldn’t have had the chance to essentially discover my area of interest inside the nationwide safety sector as a result of there are solely like three or 4 colleges within the nation which have this sort of minor. The entire faculty half was nice, however having the ability to discover what I actually get pleasure from put the cherry on prime.”