Mariel Branagan
National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA)
Washington, DC USA
"Get involved in as many ways as you can...what can you do to help?"
Career Roadmap
Mariel's work combines: Non-Profit Organizations, Government, and Helping People
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Get more involved early on. Volunteer or intern (paid or unpaid), the experience you get is invaluable. This is how you make connections and get opportunities that would be of interest to you.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Psychology, General
Old Dominion University
Bachelor's Degree
Criminal Justice/Safety Studies
Old Dominion University
Graduate Degree
Forensic Psychology
Marymount University
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
In high school, she watched a lot of Law & Order: SVU—admits she was inspired to pursue her career because of the character, Dr. Huang.
2.
Attended Old Dominion University where she received her bachelor’s degree in psychology and criminal justice.
3.
Took a gap year before going to graduate school and volunteered for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, where she worked as a referral specialist.
4.
She then went on to attend Marymount University where she received her master’s degree in forensic and legal psychology.
5.
In order to satisfy the requirements for her graduate degree, she interned at Friends of Guest House, a nonprofit dedicated to helping women re-enter the community after incarceration.
6.
After her internship was over, she managed to secure a full-time position working there as a Program Coordinator.
7.
While there, she helped start up their workforce development program, which helped women find employment after being incarcerated.
8.
She is now the Deputy Program Manager for the National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA), which helps credential military sexual assault victim advocates.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
Nonprofits are challenging. I don't want to be here anymore.
How I responded:
Things started happening at my first nonprofit job that made me realize that I didn't want to be there anymore. I had to realize that it wasn't nonprofits as an industry that were wrong for me, it was just that particular one. I quit a week later and started looking for a nonprofit job that suited me better.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
It is really difficult finding employment in the nonprofit and service-related fields. It really depends on who you know and if you don't know anybody, it can be really challenging.
Grad school is objectively hard. It comes with the territory. There are times that it would be incredibly stressful. Luckily, I really enjoyed the subject matter I was studying so it made getting through the work and projects easier.
My dad has late-stage Alzheimers and when I was going to grad school, I would commute to school 30 minutes away and then come back to help my mom take care of him.