Hi!  My name is Ally DeVito, and I am a sophomore here at the University of Pittsburgh studying Global Management and Politics & Philosophy.  I am originally from Wilmington, Delaware, and Pittsburgh is the only other city that I have officially lived in. Living in this city and on Pitt’s campus provides so many exciting and new experiences.  I love going to the city’s different neighborhoods and learning about all that the city has to offer.  On campus, I am involved with Delta Sigma Pi, a professional business fraternity, and Chi Omega, a sorority.  These organizations have taught me many valuable lessons and introduced me to many of my friends here.

Before coming to Pitt, I took a gap year that ignited my love for travelling and learning about new cultures. For this reason, I am constantly on the lookout for new opportunities to gain experience abroad, which led me to participate in the Madrid International Internship Program (IIP).  Through this program, I will live with a family in Madrid and intern with a company there.  This program will be an exciting opportunity to gain professional experience, improve my Spanish, and gain a better understanding of Spanish culture.  As I said earlier, I am studying Global Management and Politics & Philosophy.  With these majors, I hope to have a career that is international and has a positive impact on our global society.  The Madrid IIP will provide a great opportunity to gain a better understanding of what my future career may entail – the challenges and opportunities that I can expect.  Through my internship placement, I will also gain a practical understanding of the industry that I work in and will be able to assess if it is one that is right for me.

The most intimidating part of this upcoming experience is the language barrier.  I expect it to be a challenge to live life in a completely different language, and especially to work in a different language.  Adjusting to a new organization and new people will be difficult to start, but the lack of the comfort of my own first language will make that adjustment even more significant.  Even though I know that this part of the experience will be difficult, I am excited to face this challenge because of the ways that it will help me to grow.

I am excited for the opportunities that lie ahead in the Madrid IIP and to gain experience that will help me to understand and support my future career.  I hope to learn a lot, speak lots of Spanish, travel as much as possible, and have a positive impact on every community that I reach while I am there. I am currently still here in Pittsburgh anxiously awaiting the start of this journey, and will provide many more updates once it begins!

-Ally