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FEATURE
nov
14 2013
Work abroad attracts alumni
by Serena Runyan Staff Reporter
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rom villages outside of Botswana to Dongying, China, Whitman College alumni are living all over the world to impact the local communities and to learn about themselves. Living abroad offers graduates different ways to develop themselves positively for the future. For Patricia Vanderbilt ‘12, living abroad in Dongying in the Shandong province of China to teach English offers her constructive challenges and opens her eyes to new perspectives. Vanderbilt applied to teach in China after working for a year as a Fulbright English teaching assistant in New Dehli, India. “I like living abroad,” said Vanderbilt in an email. “I like the challenge of figuring out how things work in a different country, adapting to a new culture and learning a new language. I think I learn a lot about myself and my native country and culture in the process.” Caitlin Hardee ‘12 became entranced with Berlin, Germany after spending a year abroad there as a junior. She moved back the summer after graduation on a German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) media grant, and spent the next few months obtaining a visa to stay there after her grant period ended. “Berlin is fascinating as a political capital and hub of EU policy, as well as one of the nightlife capitals of the world and the true heart of electronic music in Europe. It’s also breathtakingly cheap,” she said in an email. She is currently working in Berlin with a two-year freelance visa and completing a variety of editorial and public relations projects. Unlike Hardee, Fritz Siegert ‘12 has known for years that he wanted to live abroad after graduating. “Since before college, I’ve known that I wanted to spend a sig-
nificant portion of my life abroad. As a (still) aspiring pre-medical student, this desire was only further fueled by such silly books as ‘Mountains Beyond Mountains,’” said Siegert in an email. “Mountains Beyond Mountains,” a book by Tracy Kidder, chronicles the journeys of a man named Paul Farmer who attempts to spread the benefits of modern medicine to those who need it most. Siegert is currently living in Botswana as a 2012-2013 Princeton in Africa Fellow. Like Vanderbilt, Siegert’s desire to experience a place that would contrast his life in America drew him to Africa. “I have always wanted to experience Africa, and more than that, [to] experience a way of living that contrasts from what I have experienced thus far. Apart from a short month-long stint in the UK, this has been my only trip overseas,” said Siegert in an email. And, as all of these graduates desired, the dissimilarities to America these countries provide have been sources of rewarding growth, as well as challenging adjustments. Siegert has been able to experience a change from the busy lifestyle he had in America. “Simplicity and patience are lenses through which to view the world that are often underutilized in America. Class to ASWC to rugby to TKE to volunteering to thesis to parties to catch-up coffee dates ... my last year at Whitman was as fast as it was furious. It’s been eye-opening to experience a culture and way of life that appreciates down time as much as it does busy time,” said Siegert. This element of simplicity has given Siegert many fond memories, such as hitchhiking to different villages. “Hitch-hiking is [a] fairly common way to get around in Botswana. Outside of Gaborone (the capital), most people do not own cars and rely on others to get
around. Some of my favorite moments in this country have come while I’m traveling to visit friends in nearby villages, in the back of a pickup truck on a sunny day, groups of ostriches running alongside,” said Siegert in an email. Nik Hagen ‘13 spent two months in Italy after graduation working as an au pair. For Hagen, being abroad served as an enriching transition to post-graduate life. In addition to Hagen’s opportunity to explore Italy, this break from his life in America gave him the necessary amount of independence for serious reflection. “I knew I wanted to do something completely different with my summer to serve as a separation between college and the ‘real world’,” said Hagen in an email. “In the post graduation confusion and haze, I figured my time abroad would give me time and perspective to reflect on the four years of college I had just completed and give me a chance to look ahead while simultaneously experiencing a different part of the world.” Just as Hagen used his time abroad for separated introspection, transitioning to living in India and China forced Vanderbilt to adjust to being a foreigner and has provided ample opportunity for self-definition. “I think living abroad makes me do a lot of reflecting,” said Vanderbilt. “I’ve learned to accept that I’m a foreigner. It sounds obvious, but it is difficult to live somewhere where my appearance immediately reveals me as a foreigner, no matter how long I stay here or how well I learn to speak Chinese. I’ve learned to accept the good and bad experiences that come from being a foreigner.” In China, where many people speak little to no English, Vanderbilt’s process of learning Mandarin has been a challenging opportunity to integrate herself more fully into Chinese society.
“It was a small moment, but my first real conversation with the grandmothers who live in my apartment community was a very significant experience for me,” said Vanderbilt in an email. “Every time they sit me down and ask me questions about the [United States], and after a lot of repeating and gesturing, I’m able to understand and attempt an answer; every time I feel a little more connected to China and a little happier about my life here.” Vanderbilt’s unfamiliarity with the area and the language sometimes frustrates her, but ultimately it is an opportunity for growth. Vanderbilt’s experiences have caused her to be more confident independently. “Traveling anywhere alone while abroad is always a best [and] worst experience,” she said. “It forces me to step outside my comfort zone and be vulnerable in the things I do and the connections I make. Sometimes it leads to unplanned frustrations, but as I work through them I become more confident in myself and more comfortable living in a foreign country.” Hardee is also glad to have the opportunity to practice her language skills. “I love constantly encountering an international mix of people, being surrounded by foreign languages and getting the opportunity to speak and write German on a daily basis,” she said. Hagen’s experience was also difficult at times, but ultimately helped him develop independently. “The whole experience was both incredible and incredibly frustrating,” said Hagen in an email. “The kids I was taking care of were quite the hand full and definitely tried my patience daily ... but it was an incredible time for introspection and reevaluation of the things I find most meaningful about life and personal interaction.” Hagen echoed Vanderbilt’s
emphasis on personal connection abroad. His time in Italy allowed him to reflect on his priorities. “I think the greatest thing that I learned was that regardless of the setting, I can’t find much joy in any living situation or travel experience without people I care about to share it with and interact with,” said Hagen in an email. Siegert inevitably also experiences this relative isolation as a foreigner. For one, he works through a language barrier in Botswana when he’s not teaching English. “Though the official language of Botswana is English ... the ‘language of the people,’ soto-speak, is Setswana. I have picked up bits and pieces of the language here and there,” he said. And the more laid-back attitude he has learned to appreciate from Botswana has sometimes acted as a road-block. “[T]hat same ‘simple and patient’ lifestyle that I have loved can oftentimes prove frustrating when trying to collaborate professionally with peers,” he said. Siegert has still managed to make big impacts, however. One of Siegert’s best experiences has been designing a service trip that took six students to work at a refugee camp in Northern Botswana for a week, using models from service trips he led at Whitman. “The kids loved it as much as I did,” he said. Cultural dissimilarities have also introduced Siegert to more negative aspects of living in a foreign country. “At other times, there is also a strong culture [of] misogyny that I struggle with given a good number of my close friends here are women,” he said. Overall, though, these experiences abroad have provided unparalleled opportunities for these graduates to learn about different areas of the world, their own country and about themselves.
Watson nominees pursue international projects from WATSON, page 1
Zarate expressed a desire to go into education reform or public policy one day, and this Watson project would give her the background she would need to decide what to do in these fields. While abroad, she plans to do a qualitative study by talking to high school and college students about their experience in foreign education systems. She is also already in contact with certain non-governmental agencies (NGOs) and researchers who have asked similar questions. “What is our education system producing? Are we producing critical thinkers that can go into any field, or are we using a model that just needs to be flipped? I think those are the kinds of questions I want to be thinking about while I think about career choices,” said Zarate. Chen’s project also reflects her passions. The book “The Little Prince” has motivated her ever since she was little. The book is essentially a fairytale written during World War II about a young boy who visits multiple planets, each with different problems that relate to our world. Chen will go to Poland, France, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea to explore the residues of inhumanity in those places and to see how “The Little Prince” spreads its messages of humanity to the people. One particular way she will do this is by physically reading the book in different languages to those who have lived through war crimes, Korean refu-
gees and sick children to see what different perspectives come about. “Every time I read something about peace in general, it always brings me back to “The Little Prince.” It’s been so long and yet people still read it, and I wonder what kind of essence the book has that makes it able to propagate so successfully, and how different languages mediate that,” said Chen. Rathi also has an intense itinerary. She is planning on traveling to South Africa, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Jordan, Nigeria and Morocco to investigate how the male-dominated field of filmmaking varies in different cultures. “My project is about women filmmakers in different cinema cultures around the world. I read about some interesting trends. For example, in the [United States] in 2012, the number of female directors for the highest grossing 250 films was only 9 percent. As compared to that in the Arab world, for example, almost half the directors are women,” she said. Rathi will travel to a few different film festivals, looking at how these events help women break into the industry. The ones she will attend are directed specifically at women. One in London is called Images of Black Women, and it showcases the work of black women directors or films concerning black women. Another one in Paris is solely dedicated to lesbian and transgender women. “So it’s not just about being a woman, but about being a woman of color or of sexual minority. And depending on where in the world
you come from, and what kind of privileges you have, all these things change the game completely. And without taking them all into consideration, it’s impossible to make any statement about filmmakers and what they are able to do,” said Rathi. All four finalists have completely different projects, and all are equally passionate. This passion is what has driven them through the entire journey. Although the application process is quite lengthy and strenuous, each of these applicants
declared that it was entirely worth it. “Even if you don’t get it, it gave me the opportunity to selfreflect in a way I never had before, and it’s giving me an opportunity to think more about what I want to do in the future. So I think I will have a better understanding of myself. One of the things about the Watson is that it’s all about the process and the journey starts with your initial idea,” said Zarate. When the Watson fellows return from their year abroad, they ADVERTISEMENT
will attend a national conference and give a short speech about their experience. Quarterly reports must be sent to the fellowship foundation, but other than that, the outcome is all up to the individual. “The Watson is really amazing because they’re not interested in your project — you are the project. All they want is to give you a year to go out and experience the world. And when you come back, you don’t have to give anything. You are who you are,” said Chen.