"Seton Hall gave me the opportunity to explore, grow and develop my career interests. Whether it was my internships; my semester abroad in India studying social change, sustainable development and Hindi; my summer abroad in Peru to study sustainable development and Spanish; organizing conferences on campus; listening to speakers at the U.N.; or conducting research with Dr. Edwards and presenting with him at a National Conference, I got so many opportunities and so much experience. I had a lot of support from my faculty, classmates and alumni. My time at Seton Hall has given me confidence, focus and a great education."

At Seton Hall, Cassie found her passion and was able to start building a resume and career around it. "India was defining in shaping my future," she says. Cassie's semester-long study-abroad program in India focused on sustainable development and social change. She learned Hindi, lived with a host family and gained a new perspective and understanding of the world and herself. She credits her one-month field research project in India on the impact of climate change on cash crops in a Himalayan community with allowing her to "gain field research experience which she wouldn't have been able to get any other way – at least not as an undergraduate."

This wasn't the only time Cassie's experiences at Seton Hall afforded her graduate-level experience. As a research assistant for Dr. Edwards working on a National Institute of Science foundation grant to study IMF transparency, she presented with Dr. Edwards and a classmate at a national political science conference in Chicago. "As an undergraduate I was able to complete research most people don't get to do until graduate school," she said "and the best part was after the presentation people asked me what year of graduate school I was in because we were the only undergraduate students presenting at the conference."

Cassie made the most of her time at Seton Hall interning; writing for the School of Diplomacy's foreign affairs newspaper; planning and organizing conferences for TedEx; putting her diplomacy skills to use as a member of the Village Liaisons, which deals with relationships between the University and the town; and listening to prominent speakers on campus and at the U.N. "The University connection to the United Nations is amazing and unique to Seton Hall. It provides students with opportunities to get involved, volunteer and see diplomacy in action."

"My favorite thing about Seton Hall is the support network," Cassie adds. "The faculty are encouraging and available and experts in their field. My classmates are amazing and so supportive – even former student are here to help." Cassie also loves "the diversity of the community and how this fuels interesting discussions and brings so many different perspectives to the classroom which is so important in the field of diplomacy and international relations."

Cassie's passion for India has come full circle directly after graduation: she is headed off to India for a year as a recipient of the Clinton Foundation/AIF fellowship.

More Great Minds Videos