Adopting a Global Mindset by Rachel

Adopting a Global Mindset by Rachel - March 2016 Scholarship Essay

College is an important time for students’ minds to bloom. It should be opened to new people, situations, and challenges. It's a time to get invested in things you're passionate about and find what you truly love doing. For this to happen students need to experience more than just one location other than their hometowns and college campus. They need to learn what things interest them, what things don't, and what scares them. It’s also a time to overcome your fears, such as change. To truly gain an open mind one should be required to study abroad.
Studying abroad has many advantages. It exposes you to an entirely different world and would force students out of their comfort zones. This experience also becomes addicting and sparks curiosity in students, inspiring them to want to discover more. Studying abroad would also teach people how to adapt to unfamiliar situations. This is important because in life you are not going to stay in one town, one job, and with the same people for your entire life. Many people are scared of change when change should be embraced. It helps you become a better person by teaching you how to work in many different situations.
As a military child that spent half their life overseas, living abroad has been the most influential part of my life. The diversity and adaptations I experienced have molded me into a more well rounded person. Being overseas opened my mind to all different people and taught me not to judge a book by its cover. Also the exposure to diversity helps diminish prejudice because you learn that even if someone lives a different way they are still just kind people that have families and lives. It teaches you that all people deserve to be treated no differently than anyone else. You also learn so much from different people since they live completely different lifestyles. The small stories and lessons you hear in a bakery in Germany or a cafe in France could impact your life in a much bigger way than you think.
Being overseas opens students horizons and teaches them more than a college class could. It teaches life skills and lessons that can be spread when returning back to school. New knowledge from studying abroad would stick and become a memorable experience, which could be applied to anything from moving to a new home or applying for new job.