Alumni find careers in far-flung places

Published: January 19, 2006
By Suzannah Evans

Marty Filipowski (B.A. '85) enjoys his work in Australia as well as his hobbies, such as swimming at Bondi Beach. (Courtesy photo)

Even to many Americans, Bloomington is located firmly in the "flyover zone" between New York and California. Midwesterners have learned not to assume that fellow Americans have an inkling where Bloomington or even the state of Indiana is located - and they're barely guaranteed a twinkle of recognition when they say "kind of near Chicago" to coastal citizens.

But thanks to its many international alumni, Bloomington and IU have an international reputation. The School of Journalism attracts students from all over the world. And, likewise, some native Hoosiers end up in far-flung locales after graduating, taking the IU reputation with them.

When Bonnie Brownlee, B.A. '72, M.A. '75, was a student at IU, there were many African and Latin American students in the School of Journalism. Now, as associate dean for undergraduate studies, Brownlee notes that the international student population draws more from Asia.

No matter where students come from, the international influence is important, she says.

"It's a mistake, I think, for us to think of the work we do as entirely domestic," she said. "Our students need to learn as much as they can about people of the world, issues of the world."

In fact, the entire IU-Bloomington campus will focus on "globalization and internationalism" as the theme of its upcoming accreditation process that takes place every few years.

The current crop of master's degree students includes several international students. Balakoteswara Rao Pulipaka, better known as Balu, is one of them.

Arti Jaiman (far left) on vacation with her family in India. She and her husband own a children's media company, Pitara.com. (Courtesy photo)

A native of Hyderabad, India, Balu noticed IU when searching online for associate professor positions. He had 15 years of newspaper experience, or, as one school told him, "everything except a degree."

He chose IU based on its reputation as one of the best journalism schools in the country and hopes to pursue a doctorate after finishing his master's degree.

"The people here have been very good to me," Balu said. "I like the campus. If you want to sit and study and do something, this place offers a lot of places and opportunities to do it. I can sit under a tree to do it."

Recently, the School of Journalism tracked down some of alumni living and working overseas to ask them about where they are now and what kinds of careers they've pursued. Here's what we found so far:

Charlotte Ruhe (B.A. '83) finds success in Croatia

Marty Filipowski (B.A. '85) enjoys work, life in Australia

Mette Ofstad (M.A. '88) finds life fun, challenging

In Mexico, Kristy Gladfelter (B.A. '90) assists refugees

Raju Narisetti (M.A. '91) finds success with Journal

Cara Soh Patil (B.A. '93) in education in Hong Kong

Entrepreneur Mark Renner (M.A. '94) 'in motion'

Wu Wei (Ph.D. '97) finds academic life in Singapore

Arti Jaiman (M.A. '97) heads children's media company

Julia Goh (M.A. '99) plans return to PR

Photojournalist van der Beek (B.A.'01) returns home

Kamhawi (Ph.D. '04) blends teaching, research

Are you a graduate living and working overseas? The School of Journalism would like to hear from you as well. Contact Suzannah Evans (sudevans@indiana.edu) to fill out a short survey and let your classmates know about your exotic home and work.