Over the last year, I have gained a lot of knowledge on what it means to be a global citizen scholar. Over the summer of 2022, I had the pleasure of traveling abroad to Europe with my family. This formative trip allowed me to further reflect on what “global” can mean in my life. This trip was the first time that as an adult I was able to experience a completely new culture and immerse myself in an unfamiliar world. Everything from the cars to the food to the language was completely different, but that was what excited me the most about being somewhere new. Upon returning home, I was reminded that this aspect of my “global” definition didn’t have to be so far away and distant. There are unfamiliar, exciting things right down the street. This “global” curiosity was reignited inside leading me to become more well connected to my community. Since this past summer, I have continued my “global” search for new and exciting places and things locally and across the country.

 

My Spring co-op with the German multinational corporation Siemens has also helped me gain a better understanding of what a global presence can look like in my life. My everyday work involved interacting with a team of individuals located across the country and even around the world. With coworkers in India, England, and California, I quickly became acquainted with what a global work environment looked like. Each week I became more and more comfortable interacting on a global scale and this experience alone helped me become a better global citizen scholar. Additionally, the work I was doing helped me feel like I was having a large impact, as I knew there were clients all around the world using the program I was helping with. I really enjoyed being in this type of environment and will continue to prioritize this when searching for future work opportunities.

 

Going forward, I certainly have a lot more to learn about what it means to be “global”. The good news is, I was recently accepted into UC’s International Co-op Program. I hope to complete the requirements for this program and work abroad in Germany during my 4th year. I’m extremely excited to have this opportunity to be completely immersed in a foreign country for an extended period and believe that this is the perfect opportunity for me to further develop my definition of a global citizen scholar.