Nathan Daniels is currently serving as a Nuclear Security Research Assistant and Intern at the American Security Project in Washington, D.C.
“As far as the internship, I’ve always wanted a career in public service. I felt that by interning in D.C. it would give me a first hand experience that could serve as a foundation for grad school and future careers,” Daniels said.
Daniels is the type of person that bases his decisions on faith and how they will influence others.
Daniels says he is very passionate about national security issues.
“I have felt a calling to public service for as long as I can remember. I want to be able to go to work every day knowing that I am impacting the world for the better,” Daniels said.
It is not every day that students get an opportunity like his. Daniels is originally from Savannah, Tenn. He is the oldest of four children. Daniels transferred to UTM from the University of Northern Alabama in the fall of 2012. The International Security studies program and the overall atmosphere of the campus is what brought him to Martin.
“Nathan is in a really fantastic think tank, the American Security Project, with whom we partner as a university. There he has been able to learn a lot from top notch experts in the security field. They come here to present conferences like the one [we had] on climate change this week, and we visit them on our annual D.C. trip. We have had two interns there so far,” said Sandra Koch, lecturer and coordinator of International Studies for the College of Business and Global Affairs at UTM.
However, Daniels chose the American Security Project because of the types of issues they cover and this relationship.
Recently, he also became a member of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Project on Nuclear Issues, PONI, which has the mission of sustaining a community of next generation nuclear experts and generating new ideas and debates on important nuclear issues.
Even though Daniels is in the district, he still stays involved on the UTM campus. Outside of politics, Daniels is involved in Up-Till-Dawn, where he serves as the Executive Director. He is also a Student Ambassador for UTM, as well as a founding member and the current President of the International Club. The club brings together students interested in the arena of international affairs and breaks down cultural barriers between international exchange students on campus.
Daniels has also been involved in the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature, TISL. Daniels has been involved in TISL for four years and has just been appointed to the position of Chief Clerk for the House of Representatives for the upcoming General Assembly in November.
“The competition in Washington is pretty fierce as there are thousands of students trying to do well in internships and turn those internships into future opportunities. Personal initiative is absolutely key, both in researching and applying to all of the think tanks and government agencies in D.C., but also networking later. Secondly, it’s about preparation. If you don’t know how to write briefs well, and be able to deliver talking points for your boss, chances are you will be getting a lot of Starbucks. Nathan has taken a lot of initiative in developing contacts in D.C. that will serve him well later, and he worked on his writing skills in the International Security Studies program here, so he could jump in and be useful when he got to D.C. and learn from the best,” Koch said.
Political Science professor Chris Baxter sees the internship as a valuable experience for Daniels.
“As a former legislative intern once told me, ‘It doesn’t live like it reads!’ As hard as we in political science work to try to make politics come alive in lectures, witnessing policy making first-hand can be a dramatically different experience from learning it in the classroom. Interns see first-hand how much human drama affects the decisions of our leaders. As an educational experience, there is absolutely no substitute for it. For many, internships prove to be life-changing experiences; they can provide the knowledge and connections to build a career in public service, or in some cases, they can convince students to change career paths altogether,” Baxter said.
Daniels gives credit to his professors for pushing him and having the contacts necessary to get the internships he wants and ultimately a job in his chosen field.
He is an avid movie watcher and reader and his dedication to learning shows.
Daniels will be traveling to Kenya this summer on a mission trip with his church. He hopes to study abroad in France before graduating from UTM in 2015.
For more information about Daniels’ work regarding nuclear security at the American Security Project, visit his blog at http://americansecurityproject.org/category/blog/nuclear-security.
