My early experiences at the Santa Rosa Junior College along with my six weeks in Costa Rica were my initial eye openers to the Spanish language. What started as a requirement to transfer ended as an interest and passion that will continue to be a part of my life forever. From early on I have felt sympathy for immigrants that are unable to speak Spanish, and have always felt like I should do my part to make their experience as easy as possible. Another big reason I continued to study Spanish was my amazing professor, Susana Ackerman, from SRJC. She really made learning Spanish a fun and engaging experience. These reasons made me chose the Spanish major.
This major has really taught me how big the world is. Beyond the practical skills I learned such as speaking, listening, writing, and reading I expanded my comfort horizons by assimilating myself in a new farm culture and integrating myself in a new country for a year. My initial goal of simply learning a second language evolved into a passion for attaining and understanding new cultures, and into a goal to travel more and further develop my language skills.
The area that I am most proud of through my learning in this program was overcoming the immense challenges presented by studying abroad in Chile for a year. The language and dialect barrier, the educational system change, the tough classes, assimilating to a new daily life in a huge city, and making friends were all challenged I had to face daily in Santiago, Chile. Not only is this achievement my most proud moment, it also was the most influential and beneficial thing I have done in my life to this point. Although it hasn't quite arrived yet, I have a feeling my capstone presentation is going to be high ranking as well in my proud moments. It will represent the end of a long journey I have lead, and the beginning to the next chapter of my life.
As a non-native Spanish speaker, the I wish to develop my accent in the future. This will always set me apart from other Spanish speakers, but is some what unavoidable. I also wish to develop a career in which I am able to utilize my Spanish language and travel. No matter which way the wind blows, I will always have good friends all over the world who I can speak in Spanish with whenever available. Another idea would be to get certified in teaching English, and travel south to teach in a university. This would further develop my Spanish skills, fulfill my desire to travel, and help me get into a Masters program upon returning to the United States. No matter what happens, my experience at CSU, Monterey Bay have been amazing and unforgettable.
This major has really taught me how big the world is. Beyond the practical skills I learned such as speaking, listening, writing, and reading I expanded my comfort horizons by assimilating myself in a new farm culture and integrating myself in a new country for a year. My initial goal of simply learning a second language evolved into a passion for attaining and understanding new cultures, and into a goal to travel more and further develop my language skills.
The area that I am most proud of through my learning in this program was overcoming the immense challenges presented by studying abroad in Chile for a year. The language and dialect barrier, the educational system change, the tough classes, assimilating to a new daily life in a huge city, and making friends were all challenged I had to face daily in Santiago, Chile. Not only is this achievement my most proud moment, it also was the most influential and beneficial thing I have done in my life to this point. Although it hasn't quite arrived yet, I have a feeling my capstone presentation is going to be high ranking as well in my proud moments. It will represent the end of a long journey I have lead, and the beginning to the next chapter of my life.
As a non-native Spanish speaker, the I wish to develop my accent in the future. This will always set me apart from other Spanish speakers, but is some what unavoidable. I also wish to develop a career in which I am able to utilize my Spanish language and travel. No matter which way the wind blows, I will always have good friends all over the world who I can speak in Spanish with whenever available. Another idea would be to get certified in teaching English, and travel south to teach in a university. This would further develop my Spanish skills, fulfill my desire to travel, and help me get into a Masters program upon returning to the United States. No matter what happens, my experience at CSU, Monterey Bay have been amazing and unforgettable.