Alejandro Duque

Hometown: Canal Winchester, OH

Education Background: BA in City and Regional Planning and Public Policy

How did you get interested in your field?

Like many, I had no idea what I wanted to do as I was graduating High School, however I knew I wanted to help people, and I had an interest in the built environment –although I didn’t even know what that term was back then. After a year and a half in Civil Engineering and a summer internship at a nonprofit, and a budding curiosity in politics, I quickly uncovered a discipline that combined my fascination with the impact of infrastructure and the importance I felt about social issues. The city planning program at Ohio State and all my peers and faculty there, really helped foster this growing passion of mine.

What was your background prior to coming to Penn?

In the 3-year gap between my undergraduate at Ohio State and here at Penn, I worked three different jobs! First as a consulting urban planner in Columbus, Ohio, then as a Community Navigator at a nonprofit in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of DC, and then finally as a Plan Reviewer with the Dining Out team in the NYC DOT. All these different experiences pushed me to go back into higher education and dig deeper to find out what I want to do in this field I so love.

Why did you choose Penn?

Through my experiences in the field and in life, I came to be fascinated about how migration – the movement of people – can impact the urban environment. Here at Penn, I found some faculty that have done work in that and really aligned with my curiosities of the world. This was a big driver to why I chose Penn! I also knew some students before arriving and really loved the stories they told about their experiences and their experiences with faculty.

What has been your favorite class so far? 

Migratory Urbanism was my favorite class so far! Taught by Sarah Lopez, she gave us incredible insight on the intersection of migration and city planning.

What are you learning right now that will help you in the future? 

Currently, I am taking the first class in the thesis program, Urban Research Methods, and as someone who has an interest in exploring the possibility of going into academia and working in research, I have found this to be so incredibly illuminating and informative as I grapple with the ongoing decision of applying for a PhD in our field. A special shoutout to Akira, who continues to provide us with real and insightful commentary and advice in our discipline!

What do you like best about Philadelphia?

I really enjoy Philly’s scale – it is so nice and walkable! It is easy to walk or hop on transit to see a friend across the city. Also, as someone who has many friends and family spread across the East Coast, having a close Amtrak stop gives me so much access to visit them!

What kinds of activities and/or organizations are you involved in?

I am currently the co-president for the student council at Weitzman, and I participate regularly in Raices, the Weitzman Latinx club! Being co-president for StuCo has definitely been a great learning opportunity for me as I continue to understand more about our school as a whole and meet other folks in other departments.

What are your career ambitions?

This is a question that I have continuously asked myself since starting the program. And I am not too sure I still have the most clarity, yet! I still have interest and curiosity in pursuing the idea of applying for a PhD and going into academia, however there is so much that goes into that decision for me, and one that I still have a great deal of work to do in. There is one thing that I do know that it is clear – I hope, whatever I choose to do, I am contributing to the collective betterment of our society.