Hello! My name is Stella McDermott and I am a sophomore here at the University of Pittsburgh. I am from Acton, Massachusetts, which is outside of Boston. I have a twin sister that attends Duquesne University, so although I am far from home I have a piece of it nearby! Pitt was not one of my top choices when searching for colleges, but since the first day of freshman year I believe it was the best decision I made. At Pitt, I am enrolled in the College of Business Administration pursuing a double major in Human Resources and Supply Chain Management. I am also a part of the Certificate Program in Leadership and Ethics (CPLE). Beyond the classroom, I am involved in Alpha Kappa Psi, a professional business fraternity, as well as Delta Zeta, a social sorority. In both organizations, I have had the opportunity to hold positions in order to further my leadership skills. Additionally, I hold two jobs on campus, one at The Pitt News, and another as a university lifeguard. At The Pitt News, I work in sales and am set to be the Business Manager my junior year. I am constantly looking for more organizations or activities to take up, which is why I thought this International Consulting Project would be perfect for this semester!

Beyond my four years at Pitt, I cannot predict how or where I will end up, but I can name some aspects of my career that I already know I am looking for. I hope my career lands me in a place where I am constantly working with teams of individuals, and being pushed to develop new strategies and ideas. I have always had a passion for getting to know people, thus I hope my career provides me plenty of those opportunities. Currently, I am leaning towards the Human Resources portion of my majors, thus I hope my job lands me in a position where I am working on employee relations or recruiting for the company. Additionally, international travel has been a large part of my life, and I hope to incorporate it into my career. Growing up, I was always traveling back and forth to Europe because my dad has family there, as he lived there most of his life. Having those traveling experiences growing up has made it a huge part of my life, thus I want to pursue it further. The opportunity to experience different cultures, professionally or personally, is a unique chance I hope everyone is able to experience. 

This semester I have the opportunity to participate in Pitt’s International Consulting Projects (ICP). The project I elected is in Trinidad and Tobago, through a partnership with Amizade, NatureSeekers, and DORCAS Women’s Group. Amizade is a learning organization that works to unite communities through Global Service Learning. Their initiatives are focused on developing initiatives, while acting as liaisons between international communities. NatureSeekers was founded in 1990, with the purpose of helping sea turtles. While sea turtles are still a large part of their organization, they are currently putting their effort into ‘Conservation through Experience’. Through these efforts, they are working to prioritize ecotourism and community development, which are focused on sustaining natural resources. Lastly, the DORCAS Women’s Group works to promote the community, by developing and promoting numerous activities. They also work to establish youth engagement and interaction with others in the community.

I am excited to be a part of this project because ICP is one of the more unique courses offered at Pitt. Working on a consulting project is something that most are unable to say they have completed in college, which is why I was attracted to this course. Additionally, the project allows me to pursue my international interest in learning about other cultures. My personal international experience is mainly based in Europe, so I am excited to explore another part of the world.  Trinidad and Tobago is a largely diverse country, in the southernmost part of the Caribbean islands, split into two islands. The cultural influences there range from African, Spanish and French, which are all a result of their history of international arrivals to the islands. Trinidad and Tobago’s culture itself is very vibrant, with large festivals surrounding music as well as honoring all the cultures within the two islands. Additionally, the islands themselves hold a natural beauty that allows for the environment to be a high priority in daily life. As reflected in the projects I mentioned previously, the environment is a huge aspect of the projects I will be working on this semester. 

The scope of work I will be working on, alongside four other individuals, is to research and develop a feasibility plan with the NatureSeekers and DORCAS Women’s Group partnerships. The plan is to create a long-term, financial analysis and activities proposal, as well as a timeline of projects for the future. Furthermore, the project will include separate work with NatureSeekers that involves a social media campaign and focus on developing a website. I am looking forward to both portions of the project, as they are new fields to me. I also believe the proposals as well as social media campaign will be the perfect chance for me to put what I have learned in the classroom into a real life situation. As Pitt’s College of Business Administration phrase states, ‘From the Classroom, to the City, to the World’!

Finally, I believe my own skills will develop during this project. Primarily, I think my communication skills will improve tremendously. Since I will be working with three organizations, as well as my own team, learning how to ensure everyone is on the same page will be important. I also think there may be a slight language barrier that I will have to overcome with my teammates. Secondly, I think my interpersonal skills will develop. Working with many new people, everyone will have their own preferences and ways they prefer to get work done. Additionally, I think my global competency will grow the most. Learning to work with an international organization while partnered with two organizations in the same country will provide me the chance to see multiple perspectives, as well as further my own. Not only will I strengthen those three skills, but I also believe the completion of this project will allow me to stand out as I move forward in my business career.