Dr. Miranda Melcher

Experience

• 

  Caixin Media

  Jun 2010 - Aug 2010

  Intern

  English desk intern: First-ever high school intern. Worked alongside investigative journalists and college interns in a professional bi-lingual Mandarin - English environment. Produced 3 podcasts with end-to-end responsibility: edited scripts, engineered audio files after learning software, on-air host for 1 episode. Completed English translations of 20+ articles with constant reference to the original Mandarin version. Created 15 detailed profiles of leading Chinese companies, business executives. Proposed the idea and then completed the site’s first-ever glossary of key economic, political and business terminology. Show less

• 

  Fenton Communications

  Jun 2011 - Aug 2011

  Intern

  Social media intern: Researched and produced first-ever online series of “Fenton Insights”. Independently selected articles of interest to Fenton employees and clients by voraciously following social media and approximately 40 major news sites. Work was published globally directly on the Fenton website with virtually no editorial changes after a first-week review. Contributed to a major ASPCA campaign: ghost-wrote initial blog entry, and based on positive client feedback, was asked to write all subsequent entries. For an anti-discrimination cause in Michigan, participated in strategy formulation and contributed original ideas that were later implemented. Staffed World Economic Forum-sponsored Young Global Leaders conference. Show less

• 

  US-Asia Law Institute

  Jun 2013 - Aug 2013

  Intern

  Research intern: First-ever undergraduate intern. Worked alongside lawyers to research different forms of discrimination in China. Conducted independent research on China's policy towards the UN and the Middle East. Created memo on transparency rules for US officials for the Institute’s faculty directors. Assisted with the entire overhaul of the website, and given responsibility for creation of scholarship and media sections.

• 

  The Brookings Institution

  Jun 2014 - Aug 2014

  Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence Intern

  Research intern: Worked directly for Michael O'Hanlon on his new book. “The Future of Land Warfare”. Conducted research to determine location and relative importance of strategic resources, research on possible future conflicts (particularly in the Middle East and Africa), and research on the likelihood of large natural disasters and their impact on important infrastructure like dams and nuclear plants. Published article on Brookings website with Michael O'Hanlon and Ian Livingston on the future of natural disasters and the need for increased preparation. Show less

• 

  The Brookings Institution

  Jun 2015 - Jul 2015

  Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence Intern

  Research Intern: Was invited back to work directly for Michael O'Hanlon to provide supplementary research for articles, focusing primarily on tracking the movements, ideologies, and relative strength profiles of all groups operating in the Syrian civil war. Also did research on the current security situation in various African countries including Mali, Algeria, Egypt, and Burundi, as well as on the American deployment in Afghanistan. Staffed meetings about the US military industrial complex.

• 

  The Brilliant Club

  Sept 2017 - May 2021

  PhD Scholar

  Designed and taught seven-week course titled “How to rebuild a country” for 120+ 14-18 year old secondary school students throughout Greater London and Essex from September 2017 onward, teaching at 1-4 schools per school semester. Designed and taught a one-week course on UN peacekeeping in partnership with Kent Academy Network Programme in July 2019 to 20 high-performing low-income A-level students. Designed and taught a one-week course on international law in partnership with King’s College London’s Spotlight Programme in July 2018 to 20 high-performing low-income A-level students. Show less

• 

  Northern Illinois University

  Jan 2019 - May 2019

  Instructor

  Professor for Spring 2019 online history course: Asia since 1500. In charge of developing all content, conducting student communication, and for the setting and grading of assignments. Noteworthy for entirely online and asynchronous course design and delivery, to higher than average student reviews: https://coronavirus.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2020/07/13/an-opportunity-for-creativity-and-inclusivity-an-entirely-asynchronous-online-first-year-history-course/

• 

  École de Guerre

  Apr 2019 - Apr 2020

  Auditeur Libre

  Academic consultant for the English department of the Ecole de Guerre, providing expert feedback on student-officer presentations and essays on a variety of topics through in-person workshops. Expert advisor during the April 2019 Ecole de Guerre war games to the American University of Paris’ delegation representing human rights and international organisations.

• 

  King's College London

  Sept 2019 - May 2021

  Graduate Teaching Assistant

  Nominated for GTA teaching excellence award by students in Autumn 2020. Graduate teaching assistant for Levels 1, 2, and 3 of Royal Air Force leadership training modules, both in-person (2019) and online (2020). Lead 5x2 hour seminars for each group of students over a fortnight, covering topics including Britain's security challenges, future of air warfare, and ethics of military engagement, among many others. Routinely receive feedback from students and military instructors like "You've totally changed my mind about online learning!" and "Wow, I'm rethinking everything I knew [about security]."Graduate teaching assistant for first-year undergraduate courses "Conflict and Diplomacy" and "Contemporary Security Issues". Taught in-person in 2019, and online in 2020. Lead two-hour and one-hour seminars for groups of 10-16 undergraduate students on topics including: Iraq war, counterterrorism in Afghanistan, US-China relations, Israel/Palestine conflict, and the Syrian civil war. Created and conducted simulation of negotiations to end the Syrian civil war. Responsible for grading two short papers, one group presentation, one conflict resolution simulation, and one 4000 word final essay for each student. Show less

• 

  City, University of London

  May 2021 - Feb 2022

  Assistant Educational Technologist

  Member of the Operations team, responsible for writing and keeping guidance on learning technologies accurate and updated and responding to staff and student problems & training needs on variety of learning technologies, including: Moodle, TurnItIn, Poll Everywhere, Kaltura, Teams, Zoom, and more.