Reflection
My experiences were key to molding me into the person I am today...
When I began studying at the University of Florida I was originally studying animal science. I quickly realized that my classes were making me miserable and that I couldn't see myself working in the field for the rest of my life. My college experience changed completely once I took my first anthropology class at the University of Florida and it influenced me to pursue a major in the field. The switch provided me with the credit space to take a foreign language, which made me incredibly happy as that was one of my goals when entering college. I decided to take Japanese because the language had been an interest for me since childhood. I grew a new appreciation and respect for Japanese culture and society.
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Fast forward to my junior year and I got the opportunity to study NGO management and development in India. This was the first time that I had traveled to the other side of the world. It was a beautiful experience and I will never forget it. Once I returned to the United States, I started working at the English language Institute to help students learn English and prepare them for higher education in the United States. These experiences have allowed me to grow into an outgoing, determined, and culturally sensitive leader.
What now...?
My career goals have been heavily influenced by the experiences I've had...
As stated previously, I originally began college with a different major and different career path entirely. I come from a Hispanic background and I immigrated to the United States as a young child. I am the first child in my family to go college and because of that I had a very skewed idea of what the ideal college route was. I believed that I needed to pursue a career path that would make my parents proud and provide money for my family. So once I changed my major to Anthropology, I quickly felt like lost. My parents had no idea what the field was and they didn't know what I would be working in. I couldn't blame them for being worried, since I didn't know what job I wanted to do either. However, something about the route I had chosen felt right. Even if I felt like my life no longer had direction, I felt like I was making a choice for my happiness rather than just for my family to be proud of me.
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Of course, going down this route was difficult and there were many time that I wasn't sure if I was doing the right thing, however, after all this time I feel like I have a firmer grasp on what I want to do in the future. Working so closely with international students and having so many fond memories of experiences abroad, I have decided that i would like to pursue a career in the international sector. I would enjoy a career in developing policy for education and rural development in the Department of State or an international NGO. I also like the idea of being a foreign service officer and serving the United States while abroad. While I am not completely sure about what I would like to do in the future, I am know that I want to continue working with people from around the world and make an impact in their lives.
