A Stay in Belgium by Nicholas

A Stay in Belgium by Nicholas - August 2019 Scholarship Essay

If I were to take a gap year, I would spend it in Brussels with a family friend who works for the EU, and I would work in support in the local community and study how international relations works at the European Union. As a Global and International Studies major, being able to learn firsthand from professionals in government and international affairs would be good practice and helpful for my future career.

In addition to that, as a linguistics major, I would be interacting Europeans who work with translation and interpretation day-to-day, since Belgium is a linguistically diverse nation. It would be an opportunity to learn a new language, as well as learn how to put English in the back of my mind hone my linguistic skills. Interpretation is a vastly important skill for a member of the European Union, so I would be learning valuable skills from experts as well as from the family I would be staying with.

As an American who would be living abroad in a foreign country for a year, I would have a duty to give back to the country that would so hospitable as to allow me to stay and learn from them. I would volunteer my extra time to local causes and help make a difference in a nation other than my own. Over all, my gap year would be learning abroad in Belgium, while working with my family friend in Brussels, learning about day-to-day interpretation as well as interpersonal and international skills that would help me in my future career and in turn help those that I work for and work with.