- Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
My STEP project included interning in Madrid Spain with Deloitte. We worked with new technologies to try and help other businesses become more efficient.
- What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.
I transformed in a way I didn’t expect to while in Spain. I went on this trip not knowing anyone else in the group. That was a bit intimidating for me especially being in a country I’ve never been to before. What I learned is that I can go out of my comfort zone and make friends with new people while learning a new country. I put myself out there and met great people while exploring the country. I was nervous about it but it worked out very well. I was also able to adapt to the language barrier better than I expected. I didn’t know any Spanish before the trip but I was able to learn quickly and put in an effort while talking to Spaniards. Spanish became something that I somewhat learned but never expected to. I took French in high school so this was new to be and went better than I thought it would.
- What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.
When it came to meeting people, working with two other Ohio State students at Deloitte really helped. We became close when we took a work trip to Salamanca our first week there. We explored an entirely new city to all of us together. We also innovated together and came up with new ideas for the company for two days straight so we were able to learn about each other through that.
Another relationship that I built was with my roommate. We bonded fairly quickly and it made it easy to make a good friend in the beginning. We went to dinners together after work and saw Madrid. I was able to have that one person I could feel comfortable with in a brand-new city. We had a lot in common and I am glad we got to explore the city together. I know I will stay in touch with him after this summer.
A friend I made on the trip spoke fluent Spanish. She is from Colombia so she was an excellent Spanish speaker. When we would go out in the city she would make it easier for me to pick up on the language. I could observe her talking to Spaniards and then ask her afterwards what they were talking about. It was a good way for me to learn phrases and understand certain words and their pronunciations. She helped me adapt to Spain quickly and expand my knowledge of the Spanish language.
- Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans.
This is valuable to my life because I will always need to be able to build new relationships. Something that I am not great at in the beginning but this experience improved that in me. I feel more confident meeting new people especially from different backgrounds. This will carry into my work life when I get a job or switch jobs. It will also help when I move to a new city and have to make friends there. I have a very broad perspective on different people around the world and how they live their lives. So I will be open minded when people have different ways of doing things or speak different languages. I respect that and will always want to learn more about their cultures and ways of life.
