Fatima Murji, during her internship in 2021 under the mentorship of Atifa Sayani and Marva Headley at Aga Khan Schools, supported the implementation of a new global safeguarding and child protection policy across nine countries (India, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya). This entailed discussions with key stakeholders in the field, designing and facilitating sessions on content, and coaching school leadership on effective implementation.

Through her successful internship placement, she gained meaningful experience understanding each country’s local context as well as how the broader educational network operates.

She worked on real-world problems by conducting research on best practices for a proposed Family Center. Through evidence-based research, she reviewed the existing home-based program that was implemented due to Covid-19 and made recommendations on expanding and scaling this program. She then developed a theory of change outlining assumptions, inputs, resources, activities, and outcomes for the proposed family center. She also had the opportunity to conduct interviews with teachers and master trainers in Afghanistan to better understand their local context.

Following her virtual internship supporting the Head of Academic Programs and ECD Coordinator, Fatima was successful in securing a full-time position as an Educational Officer at the Aga Khan Schools.

Her advice to future interns: “Get involved in projects that are outside your comfort zone. This is where growth will happen. Don’t be afraid to ask questions as your mentors and everyone else on the team is very supportive and they all want you to learn and succeed. Secondly, invest the time to get to know individuals and build relationships. You will learn so much from a diverse group of individuals.  Take advantage of AKDN’s talent and build a strong network.”