Owen Do ’25 Begins Graduate Studies at Harvard Kennedy School

Owen double majored in economics and cinema and media. During that time, he flexed his creativity as a student content creator, connecting with fellow Obies and celebrating Oberlin on Instagram and TikTok. After graduation, he spent a year working as a social media producer in Oberlin’s Office of Communications. 

“Listening is one of the important parts of public policy,” he says. “Let the people you’re speaking with express their ideas and listen to them in order to make changes and decisions. Doing social media, you hear from a lot of different groups, so I listened to their ideas before deciding to upload a video or post, because it might not have represented all the groups on campus.”

Owen values meeting individuals from all walks of life, calling it a deeply rewarding experience to see students pursue their passions.

“I came to understand different needs across campus and tried to represent every student group,” he says. “ I tried to hire a diverse group of students—like Muslim and Latinx creators—to cover events they were directly involved in. That gave us a multifaceted perspective.”

During his gap year, Owen began thinking more deeply about how people interact with technology and one another.

“I felt like I was engaging in public policy through storytelling,” he says. “I wanted to learn the other side of that—the design of policy, or the delivery of that to people and how it’s communicated to them. That’s something that I’m interested in. I think of myself as more a creative person, but I'm also really interested in diving deeper into data and research methods and understanding the impact of my work.” 

Flexibility drew Owen to Harvard's Master in Public Policy program, which he discovered through fellow alum Sherry Miao ’23.

“This program expands on the liberal arts education I received at Oberlin, especially my economics courses,” he says. “I still wanted to keep the liberal arts mindset and stay open to learning new subjects. I’m interested in international relations and gaining more tools that will benefit me in the future."

Owen says some graduate programs have more rigid admissions requirements, such as specific undergraduate majors or prerequisite courses. Harvard Kennedy, however, considers applicants as individuals, allowing them to express themselves through the essay portion of the application. Owen credits his Oberlin economics professors Ron Cheung and Emir Murathanoglu for supporting his application, including writing letters of recommendation. 

“There’s a lot of opportunity there to tie in the work I’ve done, the education I’ve had, and who I am as a person,” he says. 

Owen is officially enrolled in the public policy program’s technology concentration. He also serves as director of communications for Harvard Kennedy’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Society, representing and connecting more than 20 startups in the Greater Boston area.

In the coming semesters, he’ll leverage his social media background as he explores public policy in technology more deeply, especially as artificial intelligence and Big Tech evolve. Regulation is more essential than ever, he says.

“The most important part lies in the human aspect of every technology; implementation and usage should benefit users rather than having the tech take over,” Owen explains. Social media platforms, he notes, have constantly evolving community standards and policies that can be difficult for everyday users to understand. 

"I hope I can make a difference in improving the delivery of this information as well as providing support and accessibility for different groups of users," he adds. “I would love to advocate for the humans using these platforms and learn how to regulate them as they continue to grow."

If you’re looking for resources to help you with grad school applications, visit Career Exploration and Development at CELA.