Joshua Miguel Orille: From Madrid to Ottawa and Translator to Policy Analyst—A Journey into Canadian International Affairs
Before he ever set foot in a policy seminar, Joshua Orille was already navigating the world of diplomacy—through headphones and translation booths. While studying modern languages in Spain, he worked as a simultaneous interpreter for the Philippine Embassy, translating diplomatic meetings in real time. “It was my first real exposure to the diplomatic world,” he explains. “That’s when I realized I was more interested in the policy work behind international affairs.”
Determined to pursue a career in Canadian foreign policy, he began researching pathways into the Foreign Service—and nearly every road led to NPSIA. Even Canadian diplomats he met abroad were alumni. “If they all went here,” he reasoned, “it’s got to be the right place.”
At NPSIA, Orille found what he describes as a cohort filled with “insatiable drive,” but also a surprising spirit of collaboration. One of his defining memories is a group of classmates crowded around a table during finals, collectively working through complex problems in international law and statistics. “It wasn’t competitive in a cutthroat way. It was people helping each other succeed.”
That spirit carried him through challenges—including uprooting his life from Spain, managing full-time work alongside full-time graduate studies, and the uncertainty of landing a co-op placement during a difficult hiring period. But perseverance paid off. He secured a co-op at Global Affairs Canada with the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program and is now a policy analyst with the Department’s International Security Branch.
Today, Orille helps Canadian decisionmakers understand complex international security issues. In a full-circle moment, one of his academic assignments for a NPSIA course, a research paper on Canadian international security initiatives, directly led to his current role.
“Six months after writing that paper, I was working with the very people I had researched.”
His next step? The Canadian Foreign Service exam, with hopes of eventually serving as a diplomat abroad.
Reflecting on his time at NPSIA, Orille credits both his professors—including Michael Manulak and Stephanie Carvin—and his friends for shaping his experience.
“NPSIA gave me a community,” he says. “And it taught me not just how to write for government, but how to navigate it.”
His advice to future students is simple: “Don’t lose sight of yourself. Career development is important, but so are the things outside of work that bring you joy.”