What we are...
The Behavioral International Economic Development (BIED) Society is a premier international think-tank, training college, and membership association, based in Washington D.C. We were established in 2014 to help our research fellows develop a specialty and become better policy writers in international affairs.
Our Global Leadership Academy now has six fellowship and internship programs, across 20 specialized topics in international affairs. If you are looking to grow your career, be part of the international policy discussions, and support peers and be supported by other professionals, this is the place.
OUR PURPOSE
To train young research fellows to become sought-after international affairs Policy Professionals!
Our founder, Kenneth Davis, is a prior Marine and trained diplomat. He noted in Afghanistan and Iraq that young professionals would do a greater job if you gave them a seat at the table and let them do something that was bigger than themselves. He created BIED Society to give them that opportunity, through our Programs and Policy Centers.
We now also have dedicated programs for senior academics and for end-of-career professionals.
“If you get your dream job right out of college, you are aiming too low.”
– Kenneth T. Davis, PhD, Founder of the BIED Society
THE PROBLEM
A lot of undergraduate and graduate students struggle with what they should do, what their options are, and how to make a fulfilling career in international affairs.
Most students do not have a lot of experience overseas. Many students spend vast amounts of money on second, third, or even fourth Master’s degrees, without getting a great return on their investment. They will spend two years studying, in order to achieve a single additional bullet-point for their resume.
OUR SOLUTION
BUILDING BETTER POLICIES THROUGH BUILDING BETTER POLICY PROFESSIONALS
Our goal is to develop and train international affairs professionals in one of our 20 specialist topics (Policy Centers), in order to help them become specialists who can write better policies.
Our Global Leadership Academy Programs
We have created a number of Fellowship and Internship programs for students and professionals across all stages of academia, the for-profit and non-profit sectors, and the military.
We will help you: develop policy research skills as an Intern; learn to write policy papers and grant applications as a Fellow; collaborate with your peers as a Policy Commissioner; and create the transformative policies you want to see as a Senior Fellow.
Our BIED Global Leadership Academy Policy Centers
We have created 20 dedicated Policy Centers, headed by experts in their fields, to help our students pick a specialty in international affairs. These 20 topics are spread across US policy, International policy, and Regional policy.
Our Conferences
We hold conferences throughout the year. These are held in both D.C. and overseas, and are a fun and informative way to discuss key policies and international affairs topics with your peers.
We host three conferences in Northern Virginia (Washington D.C. area) focused on early career professionals. The also host three Study Abroad conferences overseas on International cruises. Theses cruises are focused on mid career to senior professionals who are interested in strong policy discussions.
Key Benefits For Our Clients:
ACCELERATE YOUR INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS CAREER AND REPUTATION
“A lot of young people will look at a good salary as ‘the big win’. However, the big win is having a fulfilling career, staying in a career that you are passionate about.”
– Kenneth T. Davis, PhD
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Our signature Fellowship ProgramOur signature Fellowship Program has been designed to help your career. Once you start getting skills others don’t have, you become more valuable. Networking is going to help you introduce yourself to other people. Creating a brand for yourself is going to help other people understand what you are doing, and make clear what you are specializing in, which makes it easier for other people to then help you. It also helps you get your name and your craft out there, so other people know who you are. The many benefits from enrolling in our Fellowship or Internship programs include: We are, first and foremost, a policy writing club. We build better professionals who can then write better policies. We offer young people the opportunity to build a career in international affairs. We think BIED Society really excels at helping our Fellows create a specialty in a field that is not usually favoring specialization. When people specialize, they end up doing much better. The people who stay with BIED Society longer, do better. Our Fellows conduct real policy work. They understand how policies work, how policies affect people, and how to implement policies. We are developing professionals who are good at their specialty, better at analysis, better at writing, better at ‘reading the tea leaves’, and better at comparing analysis from other countries that have solutions that may be right for their country. We give our students mentor ship and support they need. Passion: We provide passionate specialists for large research projects. We have a vibrant community of international affairs, national security, intelligence, science & technology, congressional, and other Fellows.
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OUR DIFFERENCEA GREAT RETURN ON INVESTMENT If you were to study for another Master’s degree, you will spend two years and a considerable amount of money to achieve ONE bullet-point on your resume. Spend two years with us, and you could have up to FIFTEEN bullet-points on your resume. You will also have written half-a-dozen papers and been published in journals; been published overseas; held some good titles; and undertaken some editing. These are things you wouldn’t necessarily get with a first or second Master’s degree. This is a great ROI for you.
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OUR UNIQUENESSWe are unique in a number of ways: Our students analyze, interpret, implement, and promote better community policy. Other think-tanks do not train professionals. Training colleges and graduate schools do not help students develop strong specialties in international affairs. We excel in teaching policy writing. Our Founder understands international affairs broadly and deeply. Our Directors have considerable reputations in their respective fields. We teach a lot of valuable diplomacy traits to our students. We are non-partisan, meaning we can have conversations that other organizations can’t seem to have. That is valuable for finding the right solution – having both political parties at the table allows us to explore what options makes best sense for which situation. It takes some students some time to appreciate the value of being non-partisan.
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OUR FOUNDER“I always encourage young professionals to get overseas as quickly as they can, to cut their teeth and make sure that’s what they want to do.” – Kenneth T. Davis, PhD BIED Society was founded by Kenneth T. Davis, PhD, in 2014. He has broad and deep experience in international affairs. Kenneth graduated with a degree in International Affairs. Later, he joined the United States Marine Corps, became an officer, and went overseas. He has spent time in 77 countries, and learned something in every country he went to. Kenneth has spent time on ‘the Hill’, with an office in the Senate to advise the Pentagon. He has advised the Senate Armed Service Committee, and understands how the House, Congress, and the Senate work. He has worked for the White House, and is still working for the Secretary of Defense on regulation for oversight and compliance. He was a trained diplomat, and has done a lot of work in international development. “I am most proud of helping our students get into their law school of choice or graduate school, or get their dream job with, for example, the FBI. They have huge smiles and really appreciate someone taking time to help mentor them on their journey.”
Explore the BIED Society
If you are looking to grow your career, be part of the international policy discussions, and support peers and be supported by other professionals, this is the place.