Evan Shallcross ’20 (M) uses international relations degree in naval career

A surface warfare officer in the U.S. Navy since 2012, Evan Shallcross ’20 (M) moved to Newport a few years ago to teach ship handling to junior officers at the Surface Warfare Officers School.

Shallcross was required to pursue a master’s degree in international relations for his career and decided on Salve Regina because it was close to home and he’d read good things about the program. “I was excited because it was a small program,” he said. “There was a lot of camaraderie.”

The program also offered a lot of flexibility, which was important to Shallcross because of his military career. “There’s a good relationship between the international relations program and the military,” Shallcross said. “That was definitely a positive for me. They cater to students who are military, they work with us and there’s a good amount of cross pollination between the educational community and the military here.”

Because Shallcross has an undergraduate degree in architecture, he was initially concerned about catching up on topics presented in his coursework, such as history, philosophy and political theory. But he was impressed with how the faculty provided background to those entering the graduate program from other fields.

“They did a good job of making sure that we weren’t just sort of thrown to the wolves,” he said. “The curriculum built that foundation or reinforced that foundation before we got into the deeper subjects.”

Shallcross also enjoyed that his critical thinking skills were challenged, both through the intellectual material he was reading and studying, but also in the papers he wrote. He noted that his writing improved throughout the program, helping him learn to articulate his thoughts and communicate more effectively for the future.

Everything Shallcross has learned through Salve Regina’s international relations program comes into play each day as he teaches his students about the role of the military and how the Navy plays a part in the complex arena of international affairs.

“I can’t say enough about the staff, about the faculty,” he said. “We were given leeway and full support to pursue any sort of direction, any sort of specialty that we wanted. We were never once told, ‘This is what you will believe, this is the conclusion that you will reach.’ We were given tools to make better decisions, to interpret decisions and to maintain a broader perspective. It’s really changed the way that I look at politics.”