Semester At Sea: Student Life Intern- Diversity and Inclusion
Prior to studying abroad with the Semester at Sea program, I applied and was awarded a work-study position aboard the ship. I was responsible for working a minimum of 2 hours a day while at sea for the student life department. This opportunity not only made sailing with SAS more financially reasonable, but also gave an added perspective to consider during my travels. As we experienced diversity at a global level, I was also driven to examine the role diversity played on
our floating campus.
As a student life team member, I planned events that challenged the shipboard community to consider diversity at the macro and micro levels. Serving as a student life intern aboard the MV World Odyssey I worked with a range of leadership styles. Not only did I work with varies takes on leadership, but most members of the Student Life staff and interns handled different aspects of student life. Each Student Life intern was assigned to one Student Life Staff member. The teams of two tackled issues of: Health & Wellness, Recreation & Student Activities, Academic Support, Religion & Spirituality, Community Service & Learning, and Diversity and Inclusion. So, while each couple had their own set of responsibilities to uphold, we joined forces as often as possible. As an intern, I worked with 5 students as well as 6 staff members. Working in such a large leadership group allowed many opportunities to reflect on my leadership style as well as strongly considering my impression of leadership styles different from my own.
Through this leadership position I was able to develop my ability to lead within a group setting amongst a variety of leadership styles. Being in a leadership position during my Fall semester abroad kept me fully engaged with my experiences and challenged me to critically examine all examples of diversity.
Diversity Programming Fall '15
Diversity Programming Fall '15