Hello, world! My name is Emily Insalaco, and I have the utter privilege of embarking on Pitt’s International Internship Program to Dublin this summer! My family currently resides in Honolulu, Hawaii, but during my trip abroad they will actually be moving back stateside (location to come!).

I am a current double degree student in both the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and the College of Business Administration, with declared majors in Sociology and Marketing. When I am not spending time working on managerial accounting homework in Sennott Square or reading books on Revolts in the Caribbean in Posvar Hall, I spend a good chunk of my time playing tenor saxophone in the University of Pittsburgh’s Varsity Marching Band. I am also a sister of Tau Beta Sigma, a national honorary band service sorority, and the Fundraising Liaison for PITT VETS. I tend to keep busy between my schoolwork and my activities, but I will never pass-up looking for a great new Thai restaurant!

Post my time at Pitt (which I cannot believe is almost half-over), I would like to go into the world of marketing, with a concentration in event planning, hopefully working for an orchestra, a museum, or a non-profit group. To be able to work for organizations and companies that align with my passions and things that I love to promote – such as music, knowledge, and service to the world – would allow my professional life to never become a chore.

I am embarking to Dublin for the International Internship Program that is run through Pitt. In Ireland, I will be working a full-time, unpaid internship for just over two months. Dublin is such a fascinating, multi-cultural city, where the old melds with the new on a grand scale, and I could not be more excited to learn not only professionally in the city, but also personally.

With this being my first internship, I am excited to make my first professional contacts overseas. With this experience, there is such an emphasis on you being able to learn not only the job that you are doing, but also from the people that you are working with. Most companies in Ireland are smaller, so this will give me the chance to get to know my co-workers well, and to learn from their backgrounds as well. This internship will also be a great opportunity to learn outside the classroom; to learn how to motivate myself and push my own opportunities forward, instead of letting a professor design the schedule and bring opportunities to me. Problem solving outside of my environment is also going to be a learning curve, but a challenge that I am excited for and willing to take on.

Personally, I hope to come out of this trip more well-rounded. My father has been in the United States’ Army all of my life, so we have moved around quite a bit (I believe I’ve moved 13 times and have lived in eight states, now). This has allowed me to learn how to adapt quite quickly and to immerse myself socially and academically. Two things I have never experienced from my nomadic upbringing have been immersing myself overseas and professionally. This program will hopefully allow me to round-out my background, and to be more comfortable with things as they come. Also, this European experience will also let me get more acquainted with public transportation (I’m sure there are some horror stories to come).

I fly from Honolulu to Pittsburgh on May 24, and then fly to Dublin the 27th! I cannot wait to find-out where I’m working, how the city will be, and what adventures lie ahead. As they say in Gaelic, slán go fóill [goodbye for now]!