Samuel L. Hinojosa

Home Undergraduate Program Life After the Department Samuel L. Hinojosa

BA in Linguistics, 1984
Senior Analyst, U.S. General Accounting Office

I'm currently a Senior Analyst at the U.S. General Accounting Office. GAO investigates and evaluates federal executive branch spending and programs for the U.S. Congress. I currently investigate justice-related programs, e.g. immigration, law enforcement, customs, counter-terrorism. I have also done national security and defense work for GAO.

I can't say that Linguistics has been a direct help in my career, but I do know that doing syntax and phonology homework assignments and take-home exams developed my analytical skills and focused my thinking on solving problems. In fact, in my interview for my GAO job, the interviewer -- the director of command, control, communications and intelligence issues -- asked me to describe my analytical ability. I didn't respond by talking about my graduate school work (international relations). Rather, the first thing the popped into my mind was syntax.

Before starting work at GAO, I taught English as a foreign language in Japan for 2 years and English as a second language here in Washington, D.C. Linguistics was instrumental in getting me those teaching jobs. A recruiter from Japan came to UCSC looking for teachers and ended up hiring at least 3 Linguistics majors.

The line-up of usual suspects for college majors does not include Linguistics. My education in Linguisitcs contributed a different line of thinking to my life, a line that very few people walk or cross. The GAO director who interviewed me 12 years ago still brings up my linguistics degree whenever I run into him.

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