Name: Julianna Chaszar
Majors Advised: Comparative Literature, French, Italian, Spanish, and Global & International Studies
Hometown: Indiana, PA
Educational Background:BA in International Studies from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, with minors in Anthropology and German.
Ph.D. in Higher Education from Penn State.
I grew up in a university setting and knew I would be happy working in that environment. It is great to be surrounded by people who are curious about the world and love learning. My first advising job was during my doctoral studies, when I was hired by the Division of Undergraduate Studies at Penn State as a part-time summer adviser for first-year student orientation. I joined the DUS team again the following summer and realized that the practical work of helping students create schedules and begin to sort out their interests was a great fit for me. I joined Liberal Arts as a full time adviser in 2006 while I was finishing up my doctoral thesis and have been here ever since!
Something most students don’t know about you: I speak Hungarian fluently and lived in Budapest for three years before I started grad school.
If you could do college over again: I might have gone further from home for college instead of staying in my hometown, but my experience at IUP was very good. I was happy to stay with my family a bit longer, and I spent a year abroad during college, so I learned how to be independent too.
What you like most about your job: It is very rewarding when students leave my office feeling more knowledgeable or better equipped to handle a situation, whether that is knowing what classes to take next, planning a study abroad experience, or learning the first steps to explore possible career paths. It is not always possible to solve a problem completely or answer a question fully, but any time I can help students productively discuss issues they are facing, I feel that my time has been well spent.