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
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