My STEP signature project was a Study Abroad trip to China. It was an international summer design experience where we did Biomedical Research at Nanjing University with grad students at the university. On the weekends, we explored different areas of China, including visiting the Great Wall of China.
While I was in China I became a lot more globally aware. I realized that the resources we have at The Ohio State University are not common at universities across the world. In China, the universities are extremely different, from classes having required attendance, to only having one dining hall for the whole campus. The way research is done is completely different. From this trip I feel as if my view of the world was transformed. I learned what differences exist between my life and the life of many students studying the same thing in China.
While on my STEP Signature Project, I spent the majority of my time at Nanjing University, specifically in a research lab. While I was in the research lab, I met a variety of students, including both graduate and undergraduate students. I learned that in China, all undergraduate students that want to go to grad school at Nanjing University must write a paper on their undergraduate research. I also learned that many graduate students can spend upwards of 10 hours, starting at 8 in the morning and sometimes lasting past 10 at night, in their research lab. On the other hand, every student gets a two hour lunch break, so that they can eat and then take a nap.
Two OSU students were assigned to one graduate student that attended Nanjing University. We ate breakfast and lunch with these students, at their school’s dining halls, and we also followed them to their lab and aided in their experiments. We did this for almost two full weeks, so in this time we got to know our grad student very well. I not only made a mentor in China, but a friend. During this process I not only got to know about school in China, but about everyday life in China for many students. My grad student told us about her life, what she does every day, her family, and many other things. I got to learn firsthand about the average expectations of people in China, their familial responsibilities, what the culture values as being important, and a lot more.
I also got to learn a lot about the rich history of China through our weekend adventures and trip to Beijing. American history goes back less than 300 years, while the history of the majority of the Eastern world goes back millennia. This trip reminded me of that and let me experience that first hand. The Great Wall of China spans thousands of miles and was built over thousands of years. Many of the bricks on it are engraved and have characters on them. The amount of work that would have taken is unbelievable, and the fact that it was done without any of the tools we have today is amazing.
This trip made me a more globally aware person. I learned a lot more about Chinese culture and feel more prepared to work with international students and people in the workforce. I learned a lot more about Chinese culture, people, and history. This trip aided me in becoming a more globally aware person, as well as give me the experience of international travel. With this trip I feel like I am more able to communicate with people from China, both on a personal, academic, and professional level. I feel like a more globally engaged citizen, and am also much more open to the idea of travelling, for work, study, and vacation.
