Prepare a short essay (300-500 words)
How will your semester at sea voyage create (or enhance) your personal global perspective? Highlight your discussion by referencing at least one country on your itinerary and by explaining how your time there will further develop your awareness.
*My essay is currently 530 words. I don't know how strict they are on the word count. Should I try and shorten it or is the extra 30 words okay?*
"Adventure is a path. Real adventure--self-determined, self-motivated, often risky--forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not how you imagine it" - Mark Jenkins.
This quote signifies my want and need to be scared, to explore the unknown, and to expand my global perspective. We spend numerous years of our lives going to school, learning and experiencing through textbooks or lectures, but why? Why rely on conventional learning when you can travel the world and encounter first-hand all the things you have been reading about? I want to be able to hear the sound of the waterfalls crashing on the rocks below like the heartbeat of the world in Mauritius. I want to absorb the sacredness of the temples I will visit in China. I want to witness the struggle that children and families overcome everyday in Ghana and be able to commend their strength. Most notably, climb to the top of Table Rock in South Africa and view the world in a way that is indescribable. I long to get lost on a journey that would help me find myself, and semester at sea is the once in a lifetime opportunity to help me accomplish that.
For 18 years of my life I've lived in the same house, in the same town, around the same people. I saw college as my chance to go explore new things, people, and environments. I thought I was embracing that opportunity when I packed up and chose a school over 400 miles away from my comfort zone, and now, two years into college, I am ready to be nervous about something again. My goal is to use this opportunity to expand my global perspective, in regards to my respective major of child development, by observing children in other countries and applying my observations with the knowledge I have already acquired about the development of children at different stages of growth. Considering my previous education in my major I am most excited to visit Ghana. I chose Ghana because I am eager to observe and analyze the behaviors of children who are raised in unique conditions; then follow up by comparing them to the theories of development created by psychologists such as Erik Erickson, Jean Piaget, and Urie Bronfenbrenner. I want to examine the areas of motor development for children who lack access to crucial tools and instruction vital to enhance these stages of life. Along with furthering my education throughout a semester at sea, I crave to immerse myself in the different cultures of the world. I want to try new foods, become accustomed to different traditions, and experience the world outside of the United States in a unique way.
Ever since I discovered what the Semester at Sea program was from an alumni I have been captivated by the idea of an opportunity like this. The thought of receiving a once in a lifetime opportunity to circumnavigate the world amazed me. I want Semester at Sea to change me for the better, to give me a greater global perspective of the world, and to give me the opportunity to better the world after traveling it.
How will your semester at sea voyage create (or enhance) your personal global perspective? Highlight your discussion by referencing at least one country on your itinerary and by explaining how your time there will further develop your awareness.
*My essay is currently 530 words. I don't know how strict they are on the word count. Should I try and shorten it or is the extra 30 words okay?*
"Adventure is a path. Real adventure--self-determined, self-motivated, often risky--forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not how you imagine it" - Mark Jenkins.
This quote signifies my want and need to be scared, to explore the unknown, and to expand my global perspective. We spend numerous years of our lives going to school, learning and experiencing through textbooks or lectures, but why? Why rely on conventional learning when you can travel the world and encounter first-hand all the things you have been reading about? I want to be able to hear the sound of the waterfalls crashing on the rocks below like the heartbeat of the world in Mauritius. I want to absorb the sacredness of the temples I will visit in China. I want to witness the struggle that children and families overcome everyday in Ghana and be able to commend their strength. Most notably, climb to the top of Table Rock in South Africa and view the world in a way that is indescribable. I long to get lost on a journey that would help me find myself, and semester at sea is the once in a lifetime opportunity to help me accomplish that.
For 18 years of my life I've lived in the same house, in the same town, around the same people. I saw college as my chance to go explore new things, people, and environments. I thought I was embracing that opportunity when I packed up and chose a school over 400 miles away from my comfort zone, and now, two years into college, I am ready to be nervous about something again. My goal is to use this opportunity to expand my global perspective, in regards to my respective major of child development, by observing children in other countries and applying my observations with the knowledge I have already acquired about the development of children at different stages of growth. Considering my previous education in my major I am most excited to visit Ghana. I chose Ghana because I am eager to observe and analyze the behaviors of children who are raised in unique conditions; then follow up by comparing them to the theories of development created by psychologists such as Erik Erickson, Jean Piaget, and Urie Bronfenbrenner. I want to examine the areas of motor development for children who lack access to crucial tools and instruction vital to enhance these stages of life. Along with furthering my education throughout a semester at sea, I crave to immerse myself in the different cultures of the world. I want to try new foods, become accustomed to different traditions, and experience the world outside of the United States in a unique way.
Ever since I discovered what the Semester at Sea program was from an alumni I have been captivated by the idea of an opportunity like this. The thought of receiving a once in a lifetime opportunity to circumnavigate the world amazed me. I want Semester at Sea to change me for the better, to give me a greater global perspective of the world, and to give me the opportunity to better the world after traveling it.
