Writing Graduate Journeys Across Disciplines and Stories

Published April 21, 2026 | Request Information

Marcela Ossandon Avetikian vividly remembers a moment from her childhood: sitting in the back seat of a car, looking out the window, and deciding – without quite knowing how – that her life would be full of many different experiences.
It wasn’t a plan so much as a feeling.

Today, that instinct has become a kind of compass. Born in Chile and raised in Italy, Ossandon has built a life shaped by movement – across languages, cultures, and disciplines. Her work in global humanitarian efforts has taken her across borders, while her creative pursuits have allowed her to explore these factors in another way.

“I am a humanitarian first,” she said, “but also a learner of life.”

From her home base in Rome, she has continued to trust that instinct – to step into new environments, new ideas, and new forms of expression.

Ossandon is now set to add the MA in Writing degree from Johns Hopkins University to a wide-ranging academic background. This includes degrees in sociology, marketing, and communication from institutions in Italy, as well as a certificate in documentary filmmaking from George Washington University. It is another layer in a life defined not by a single direction, but by many.

“My international upbringing and the scope of my work have fueled my curiosity,” said Ossandon who is fluent in Italian, Spanish, and English. “Every time I travel, I ask myself, ‘Could I live here?’ It makes me deeply curious about the world. That is my drive.”

Each step in her path reflects a willingness to start again, to be a beginner, and to follow curiosity rather than convention.

Each pursuit – including studying drums, exploring acting, and practicing photography – has offered a different way of seeing. Her taste of documentary work opened the door to writing. At Hopkins, Ossandon immersed herself in multiple genres, including memoir, fiction, nonfiction, screenwriting, and scientific writing, expanding her creative range while developing a stronger sense of structure and craft.

“The master’s has been great,” she said. “I dedicated myself to the program, and I am really happy that I did it. It gave me a lot of confidence in my writing. I learned so much about how to shape my work and better understand the tools available to me. My screenwriting course with Brian Price was particularly memorable, but I gained something valuable from every course and every faculty member. It reaffirmed that I am on the right path.”

Her thesis reflects that breadth: a collection that moves fluidly between forms – opening pages of a screenplay, chapters of a novel, scientific articles, and even pieces of humor – mirroring her interdisciplinary approach to both writing and life.

At the same time, she has been developing a young adult novel centered on a refugee child, exploring resilience, dreams, and the emotional terrain of displacement. The project echoes elements of her own transnational experience, though she approaches it through fiction rather than memoir.

For Ossandon, writing is not just about storytelling—it is a way of understanding. The most significant shift she has experienced as a writer is one of trust. Where she once dismissed her ideas, she now embraces them.

“I am being flooded with ideas constantly,” she said. “Before, I didn’t think they were valid. Now I know that they are.”
That confidence is grounded in pragmatism. With a demanding full-time career, she is careful not to overstate her ambitions. Publishing a novel or producing a screenplay may or may not come.

“We will see what life brings,” she said. “I can feel the difference in my writing, and that is already something.”

Ossandon’s openness to growth extends beyond writing. For now, Rome remains home. She plans to keep writing and to continue exploring another growing interest: mindfulness –part of a broader belief in lifelong growth and reflection.
“I think life is made of opportunities and challenges,” she said. “You learn from pain and setbacks, and you learn to appreciate the little things that are good in your life. For sure, I will make time to write and keep exploring this craft. I also think mindfulness teaches you how to live a better life.”

The life she imagined as a child has taken shape, not as a single path, but as many overlapping and unfolding ones –humanitarian, student, artist, writer.

“What would I tell her?” she said. “We are somehow doing it! We found a way.”

And still, just beyond the window, there is something new to discover.

“I carry a little piece of that little girl always,” she said. “She is always a part of my adventure.”