For my STEP Signature Project, I traveled to Trondheim, Norway with 9 fellow Ohio State students. In Trondheim, we were enrolled in their university, known as NTNU where we took a biomedical research class.

My view of the world changed quite a bit throughout my experience in Trondheim. Right away I realized major cultural differences between America and Norway. Before this trip, I never thought about how people would act so different socially than Americans do. Norwegians are much more reserved and quiet; they do not talk in public nearly as much as Americans do. I respect the way people in Norway act and live their lives. They are the happiest country in the world, and it is not difficult to see why. They are very care free and go with the flow which contrasts Americans greatly because we are often so focused on efficiency and money saving that we don’t take a chance to enjoy our loved ones and the beauty that is our lives.

In addition to their way of life, my views transformed throughout our class. We got to talk to many different researchers and other people that worked in the lab about whole genome sequencing. Through these interactions I learned a great deal of bioethics, and realized how difficult it is to remain ethical enough for the procedure to be used regularly with patients. This was really interesting to me because some of the things were so obvious, I had just never considered them before.

I stayed with a host family in Trondheim, so I was really immersed in what Norwegian family life is like. The relationships that I made with my host parents and my three host siblings are ones that I will cherish forever. My host brother, Ola, was the most caring and funny little boy. He played soccer almost everyday, and on his 8^th birthday he asked me to make him American pancakes. My youngest host sister, Petra, was full of sass but was also loving and grateful for the life she had. She had the most contagious laugh, played handball and gymanstics, and jumped on the trampoline for hours every day. My oldest host sister, Tora, was so down-to-earth and always tried to include me when she was spending time with her friends. She also played soccer. Being a soccer player myself, I loved playing with my host siblings and it was something that connected us. My host parents always included me in family activities and tried to make me as comfortable as possible, and I truly believe that I will stay in touch with them.

The nature in Norway is absolutely breathtaking. On the weekends or after class we would often go on hikes in the mountains and along the fjord that ran through my host family’s back yard. The most amazing part was that there was still snow in the mountains but the ocean was right beneath us. I have never traveled somewhere where there was snow at the ocean before, so that was a new experience for me. We had a long weekend because of Norwegian national holidays so I did not have class and my host family did not have school or work, so we traveled to their cabin in Åre, Sweden for four days. Åre is a ski town and their cabin was in a little development in the middle of the mountain right a long the ski runs. We went hiking a lot there and I got to meet many of their family friends and learn even more about Norwegian family life.

One day in class, we had a lecture where our professor had us think deeper into what “ethical” means and to think about how something can seem obviously ethical in one scenario but in another, the same thing has a lot of ethical question surrounding it. Through this lecture, I thought about things that I had never considered before and realized the differences in situations and how in the world of medicine, it is nearly impossible to create black and white rules for what is ethical because there is always a gray area. Throughout this day and many other days in class, I learned how using genome sequencing in medicine can be viewed in different ways and it really transformed my view of people and culture.

I think that experiencing what Norwegian’s family life is like will make me always reconsider my thinking and my actions when I am getting stressed and overwhelmed with school and work and all my other responsibilities. I will think back and remember how my host family just let things go and took difficulties one step at a time, and things always worked out in the end. I will remember that my relationships with people who love me will always be there and are the most important part of my life. As far as my professional goals, I think that now I will be able to see from someone else’s point of view more clearly, which is very important for my future career as a genetic counselor.