My career because of Valencia

This study abroad experience has been eye opening as I have been able to learn about a brand new culture and meet brand new people. Apart from the social aspect of the knowledge I've gained, there is also a lot that I have learned about myself and the career path I want to undertake.

How this experience exposed me to new knowledge, skills, and competencies

"Fire Research"

Obviously there is a lot to learn when working on the research projects here in Spain. One of the competencies I have gained has been over my specific topic of research; fire. I don't want to say too many specifics because this is still on going research and I don't know how much information I am allowed to share, but there is no doubt that I am becoming more aware of a subject that few know about. There hasn't been much research over this topic, so being that I will be studying it for six weeks, it'll allow me to become more familiar with it and take some of the lessons I learned with me to the states. This is a good transition to my next point which is gaining the ability to understand a big problem and break it up into little steps. An entire research project cannot be completed in six weeks. It is absolutely impossible. Most of these projects have been going on for years and have been spear headed be renowned researchers and engineers. Because of this, our jobs as students isn't to finish the research or conduct all the experiments, it is more so to understand what's going on. The professors have introduced us to the big picture idea and what the end goal will be and our job is to be able to understand the objective. We then get told of a small portion which is what we as the students will be taking on. Being able to understand the big picture is important, but also understanding the little subsequent pieces that are needed to make the big picture a reality is also key. I know can say that I understand more the breakdown of research projects because I have been exposed to and explained to process to.


How do I plan on using this experience with current educational goals upon return

Collaboration

Learning all these traits and skills mean nothing if you plan on keeping them to yourself. Have of the battle is learning how to apply them to your everyday study and endeavors when you return back to the United States. One of the biggest lessons I have learned is the act of collaboration. This has been a international experience where we are taking across the world to learn what other countries are studying and discovering. Quickly you learn that most of these topics are a collaboration of various locations and institutions. No one can do everything by themselves. We learned that most of the European Union assist each other in projects and offers to collaborate based on their area of expertise. This is something I am glad I understand more and will be able to use in the future. Another thing I plan to take back with me is the ability to help out others. The mentors (at least for me) have been extremely friendly and helpful with anything and everything. They understand that you might not know what's going on and they explain things slowly to you. This allows me to remember what it felt like not understanding and once it's my turn to teach someone else, I will have that same patience and understanding.


How will this experience impact my decisions for future career objectives

Researching where we are

This experience has done nothing but enhance my desire to pursue graduate studies. One of the reasons I really wanted this experience was to be exposed to the research to see if it was something that I wanted to continue in the future and based on what I have encountered so far, it is. The ability to discover something that no one else has seen is very cool to me. Being able to look back at something and think" I created that," or "I developed that idea," is a feeling that can't be matched. So for now, I am excited to tackle my last semester of undergraduate studies and hopefully begin a new one for my graduate adventures.



Until next week,

Eric Chavez