Name: Maura Joul
Hometown: Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Area of Study: SIS
Activities: Delta Phi Epsilon Professional Foreign Service Sorority, SIS Undergraduate Council (Eboard-vice president in fall)
Hobbies: Crafting, traveling, canoeing, hiking, (anything outdoorsy), drinking good *strong* coffee, baking, sightseeing, and indulging in Captain Cookie’s cookie sandwiches
Her Campus American University: What is the most interesting reaction you’ve gotten when you tell people you’re from Minnesota?
Maura Joul: Well since I’m from Saint Cloud, I always get the reaction of “OH like Charlie Saint Cloud?!” and I tell them that the St. Cloud in this movie is part of a name, it has nothing to do with the actual town I am from, and that I’ve never actually seen the movie. The response I most often get when I tell people I’m from Minnesota is “Ooooh Minnesooooota.”
HCAU: Do you have any special talents?
MJ: …I can whistle
HCAU: What is the last movie you watched?
MJ: The Proposal
HCAU: What kind of Wonk are you?
MJ: If I had to pick any type of wonk, I guess I’d be a refugee/migration issues wonk. I wrote a case study on the Refugee Act of 1980, a policy brief on refugee related issues in my hometown, and am now interning at the American Red Cross-International Reconnecting Families services where they work directly with many refugees. I’ve only recently started learning more extensively about this topic, but if there’s anything I enjoy learning about, it’s this!
HCAU: If you could choose anyone to take Neil Kerwin’s place at the end of next year, who would you choose?
MJ: I would go with Shiza Shahid. She left a career at a major consulting firm to start the Malala Fund- she has a heart of gold, she’s inspiring, and she’s most definitely a badass.
HCAU: What is it like being in a professional fraternity?
MJ: It’s so cool, I love it! I love being able to grow and develop professionally while also having a social life within the sisterhood. I’ve met some of the most amazing girls within this organization who inspire me every single day- girls who literally do it all- school, an internship, a job, AND manage to have a crazy social life on top of all of that. It’s cool having a group of girls to go to for resume/cover letter/professional advice and then be able to go out with those same girls on a Friday night.
HCAU: What is the best part of being a transfer student?
MJ: I guess I would have to say the best part is having already gone through freshman year and knowing how to “do college,” so although I’m new to AU, it’s not like I’m entirely back at square one as a freshman.
Photo Credits belong to the cutie.