Young Diplomat Organizes Meeting

Christiane Haberl, graduate student in McMicken's Diplomatic Academy and University of Cincinnati Dual Degree Program, doesn't fit the image of a typical foreign diplomat. But she behaved as skillfully as one when she discovered that Peter Berz, a senior European Union official, was coming to Cincinnati to speak to local business people. Not only was she able to arrange a meeting between Berz and her fellow graduate students in the political science department, but they had dinner together as well.

Haberl found out about the visit because in addition to her school work, she also serves as the executive director assistant for the French-American Chamber of Commerce (FACC), which is located in downtown Cincinnati. FACC is “an independent, non-profit, bi-national organization dedicated to fostering and maintaining good economic, commercial, and financial relationships between the United States and France.” It is currently in the process of extending its services to the entire European Union, and this was the reason for Berz's visit.

The Austrian graduate student is used to achieving what she sets out to accomplish. She first earned an MA in International Business Studies from FH Kufstein, a four-year bilingual program that oversaw her first two years of study in Austria, a third in Spain, and a fourth in France.

Then she returned to Austria where she enrolled at the highly competitive Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, which provides postgraduate training for young graduates preparing for international careers. She is currently completing another master's degree at McMicken's Diplomatic Academy at the same time that she is working on a PhD in political science.

Most encouraging for the college is that Haberl is not unusual in her enthusiasm. Richard Harknett, coordinator of the dual degree program, says, “She and other Diplomatic Academy students like her have been a major boost for the department not only in their professional conferencing but also in entrepreneurial activities.”