The end is finally here, and I’m sad to say goodbye to this experience. After being home for a bit, I’ve been able to more clearly reflect on this opportunity and all the amazing memories I made along the way.

During the first week, I set up a few goals for myself that I wanted to reflect on:

1. Push myself out of my comfort zone within my internship: I can say without a doubt that my internship pushed me out of my comfort zone in the best ways. At Pitt’s business school, I rarely get to interact with communications and PR practices, but here at Ardent, I jumped head first into copywriting and campaign briefing, skills I had never really used before. My role at Ardent allowed me to see all the ways Marketing intersect with other business areas like SEO, Paid Social, Creative, and PR. I miss my Ardent team already, and I couldn’t be more excited tot take what I learned back into my studies and future jobs!
2. Make the most of my Analyzing and Exploring the Global City Course: I couldn’t be happier that I picked this course to take along with my internship; not only did it fulfill credits for me at Pitt, but it also made me look at Sydney through different perspectives. Our professor Lorna challenged us to see Sydney for all that has to offer, but also how far it has to come to provide for its citizens. During our classes, we got to take some amazing field trips to explore museums and neighborhoods, and I got to see so much more of Sydney because of it!
3. Maintain my relationships with fellow classmates and Sydney-siders: Over these 6 weeks, I was so lucky to meet so many amazing people from all over the globe. From friends we met on the program, to local Sydney-siders, I plan to stay connected to all of them in hopes of returning to Sydney soon. I feel very lucky to have a network of friends from across the US that I got to share this experience with, and look forward to visiting them and hosting them at Pitt soon!

Studying abroad taught me so much, from managing my time between work, school, and fun, to learning how to connect in a multicultural city. I also developed so much of my “people skills” like resolving conflict and planning trips when you have 15+ people! Soft skills like these are what will aid me in my final 2 years at Pitt, as well as future experiences abroad. 

I couldn’t be prouder of all I accomplished during my six week program: from visiting 4 new cities, to bouncing back after some bumps in the trip, and gaining so much experience from my internship and classes. I will miss Sydney dearly and I cannot wait to visit again soon!