Education Abroad: Jaisalmer, India
Elizabeth Navarre
The smell of sunscreen, sweat, and sand overwhelmed my senses in the evening heat, but as I stared out into the rolling desert dunes, I realized my life had completely changed. I was in Jaisalmer for a sustainability study of the Jaisalmer Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city was experiencing problems with its sewage system, and these problems were beginning to cause the breakdown of the fort’s structure. Our client, the Prince of Jaisalmer, asked us to find a way to fund the replacement of the city’s sewage system using a reputable engineering firm with no conflicts of interest.
As much as I would love to say that I had no preconceived notions of India and its people, I had certain expectations about the culture in India. As soon as we arrived in Jaisalmer, the majority of these expectations and stereotypes were shattered. I thought that people would only have minimal concern for us because we were tourists, but they treated us as a part of their community by day two. I fell very ill on the second night, and several of the locals consistently asked me how I was feeling every day of our trip and invited us to their family ceremonies because we were now considered family.
Considering we were in Jaisalmer for work, I believed we would have a relatively strict schedule. I quickly realized that the work and time culture in India is very different from the United States. Many people there are much more flexible with time and the purpose of meetings. From this experience, I learned to be more comfortable in ambiguous situations. I have always run my life on a tight schedule, and this experience put me out of my comfort zone.
I learned many applications to business while working in Jaisalmer. It was incredibly transformational for me to practice diagnosing a problem and researching a solution in the real world. Business classes are highly theoretical with relatively clear-cut solutions to cases and tests. This was a real world problem that the fort in Jaisalmer was experiencing, so it helped me to better grasp problem-solving techniques. I learned that your best research is done in person with your client as opposed to behind a computer screen. This was a very valuable lesson for me to discuss when interviewing for public accounting internships because public accounting relies on your ability to communicate efficiently with your client.
Another valuable skill I learned was how to quickly adapt to a new team. Our team was only five members, who had met roughly four times before flying to India. I had always been a part of teams in the past that I would just do the work if other members were slacking off; however, this was a situation where this tactic would not work. We discovered that we really had to rely on each other while in India because of the ambiguity surrounding the project, the unfamiliar environment, and the extreme temperatures. We all brought different strengths to the table, and this helped us gain a variety of perspectives and to build off of each others ideas.
Finally, I think this transformation and the lessons I learned in the process will be highly beneficial for my future career. I want to work in public accounting, which is a team oriented job. Every project in public accounting is different, so my STEP project was incredibly applicable to helping me be comfortable in ambiguous situations and new teams. It helped me to better diagnose a problem and communicate with clients. Also, I learned how showing concern and teaching people about your culture or best practice can really help me to build partnerships. All of these lessons will be applied to my future career and help me to be a better globally engaged citizen. Overall, my STEP project was the most incredible experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything.