Career mentoring & alumni network

Impressive. In a word, the MPSN network is impressive.

Our network by the numbers

With over three decades of history, MPSN alumni now number over 350.

350+ Alumni
25+ States
15+ Countries
30+ Years

Alumni have gone on to hold positions in:

MPSN Alumni Network
  • White House and Executive Office of the President
  • U.S. Department of State
  • U.S. Congress (House and Senate staff)
  • National Security Council
  • Department of Justice
  • Department of Health and Human Services
  • Department of Homeland Security
  • City and state government offices
  • International organizations (UN, World Bank)
  • Hearst Magazines, Project Director
  • Al-Jazeera English, (Emmy-award-winning) Faultlines Senior Producer
  • Doha News, Co-Founder
  • KQED Lab, Director
  • Gulf News, Middle East Editor
  • The Chicago Reporter, Digital Editor
  • Al-Jazeera English, Co-Host, The Stream
  • Unity Productions Foundation, Development Coordinator
  • Colorlines, Contributing Writer
  • LinkedIn Learning Solutions, Head of North America Sales
  • Kiwi, CEO
  • FastCables Limited (Pakistan), Director
  • Frost Capital, Chief Executive Officer
  • UBS Investment Bank, Partner/Director
  • Emergence BioEnergy, Managing Director
  • Booz Allen Hamilton, Policy Advisor
  • Peace and Collaborative Development Network, Business Development Officer
  • Oracle, Business Intelligence and Analytics Account Manager
  • McKinsey & Co, Engagement Manager
  • Elixir Capital, Co-Founder
  • Takim's Holidays (Tanzania), Director
  • Walmart, Vice President of E-Commerce, Mobile and Digital Marketing
  • Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Doctor, Obstetrics & Hospital Medicine Specialist
  • Summit Medical Group, New Jersey, Dermatologist
  • Ryan Health, Medical Director for Harlem Sites & Community Health Outreach Program
  • Harvard Medical School, Instructor, Neurology
  • Film and television production
  • Museums and cultural institutions
  • Publishing and literary arts
  • Music and performing arts
  • Visual arts and design
  • Morrison & Foerster, LLP, Partner
  • Boeing, Procurement & Compliance Advisor
  • Kuck Immigration Partners, Partner
  • Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Trial Attorney
  • KPMG Law, Associate
  • Kirkland & Ellis, Partner
  • Assegaf Hamza & Partners (Indonesia), Senior Partner
  • Harvard Law School, Islamic Legal Studies Program, Co-Director
  • University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa), Professor & Head of Law School
  • Yale Law School, Kamel Center Bartlett Research Fellow
  • Stanford University Plattner Institute of Design, Director
  • Georgetown University in Qatar, Department of History, Associate Professor
  • Georgetown University, Student Leaders, Assistant Director
  • Johns Hopkins University, DC Regional Campus Librarian
  • Skidmore College, Department of History, Assistant Professor
  • Stanford Law School, Religious Liberty Clinic, Supervising Attorney & Lecturer
  • Santa Clara University, Professor of Political Science
  • Barnard College, Athena Center for Leadership Studies, Director
  • University of Michigan, Director & Professor, Arab and Muslim American Studies Program
  • Huron High School, Mason, OH, Teacher
  • Keepers Institute, Lead Teacher
  • American University of Cairo, Assistant Professor
  • Florida International University, Dept of Religious Studies, School of Int'l & Public Affairs & Islamic Studies, Associate Professor
  • University of Illinois-Springfield, Associate Professor of Political Science
  • California State-Long Beach, Department of Sociology, Assistant Professor
  • ACLU, National Political Director
  • Linktank, Founder & CEO
  • OpenGov Hub, Director
  • Open Society Foundations, Program Associate
  • Quality Life Center of Southwest Florida, Inc., Academic Specialist
  • Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles, Associate Director of Litigation and Policy
  • Native Youth Leadership Alliance, Co-Founder, Co-Director
  • ACLU National Security Project, Nadine Strossen Fellow
  • African Leaders Malaria Alliance, Director
  • Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network, Public Policy Associate
  • Citizens for Juvenile Justice (Boston), Deputy Director
  • ACLU Southern California, Staff Attorney
  • IMAN (Inner City Muslim Action Network), Associate Director
  • CAIR-Houston, Executive Director
  • Amanah Refugee Services, Director of Refugee Services
  • Islamic Relief USA, Adalah Consulting, Government Affairs Representative
  • Muslim Advocates, Communications and Media Consultant

How our mentoring works

Our alumni know what it feels like to be an MPSN Fellow — moving to DC, living with a crowd of new faces, discovering the city's culture and events, and trying to figure out their place in the world, both personally and professionally. We bring several of these alumni back every summer to give our Fellows a head start in all of these areas.


They donate their time with personal insights and advice on their work in government, policymaking, foreign affairs, media, PR firms, academia, as well as general networking and career planning. We also run a mentoring program, matching each Fellow with our alumni speakers and other alumni in their fields.


This not only gives our Fellows a crash course on the world of public service but also gives them a view into that world, tailored to understanding Muslim experiences in these spaces. This gives them immediate empowerment as more educated American Muslim citizens, regardless of their future career choices.

When we started MPSN, there were few role models for Muslims in DC. But thanks to MPSN alumni over the past 25 years, we have an extensive network that helps mentor the next generation of public servants. I'm proud that we played a role in making this happen. — Shahed Amanullah, MPSN Board of Directors

Past alumni presentations

  • US Foreign Policy Toward Muslim-Majority Countries
  • Understanding the American Political System
  • What are the Layers of Influence in Washington?
  • How to Maintain Ethical Standards in Government
  • Navigating the Media Landscape as a Muslim
  • Career Planning and Networking in Washington
  • The Role of Muslim Voices in Policy Debates
  • Building Coalitions Across Communities
  • Faith and Professionalism: Finding the Balance
  • Muslim Americans and National Security Policy

Joining the extended family

After their MPSN summer, Fellows become part of the MPSN extended family. They get to join our active alumni network. We take the "N" in "MPSN" very seriously, creating alumni events around the country and a quarterly alumni newsletter with updates about the incoming class and recent accomplishments of our alumni.


The active networking of alumni across the decades of MPSN classes has had personal and public impact in ways that are impossible to count. Here is just one example: years ago, an alumnus working at the Treasury Department networked with an alumnus from Ramallah to ensure that a Treasury Department delegation met with Palestinians during their fact-finding visit to Israel.

Apply now for Cohort 33 (Summer 2026)