Olivia's First Semester Summary,, Our Global Scholar
Posted by Ernest Hauser on Feb 06, 2017
Olivia Hernandez is attending the University of Edinburgh as a Global Scholar. The Rotary Club of Humble sponsored her and her education is funded by a grant funded by a $31,500 scholarship funded with $15,000 of DDF from the District and $1,000 from the Club with a $15,500 match from The Rotary Foundation. She shares a summary of her first semester.
First Semester Summary
Now that second semester is beginning, I’ve had time to reflect on my first semester at the University of Edinburgh and can honestly say it was everything I hoped for it to be and more. I’ve gotten the opportunity to become involved in several different activities and clubs, as well as to visit various Rotary clubs and meet their members. It’s amazing how much has gone on in just the first four months!
The MSc International Development has students from across the world with a wide range of educational backgrounds and experiences which have only enriched my studies both in and outside of class. Being able to discuss development topics with people from different developing nations has exposed me to the invaluable perspectives of people who have lived in the countries we study and who have first-hand experience. There are two other Rotary Global Scholars in my program and it’s been great to be a part of the program and Rotary together. We are currently in the process of selecting dissertation topics and preparing research proposals so I hope to be able to share what I’ll be researching soon!
My first presentations for Rotary clubs will be coming up this month, but last semester I had the privilege to travel to Yorkshire and be part of the Rotary District 1020 Conference. I and two other Global Scholars were able to attend a series of interesting presentations with topics ranging from aid work in combat zones to providing wheelchairs for those who were affected by polio. We also were part of the program as we had a sort of Q&A session where we answered questions about our studies and what motivated us to choose our programs. After presentations, the other scholars and I also had the opportunity to eat at the famous Betty’s Tea Rooms in Harrowgate and to explore a bit around the town.
There have also been two international nights for scholars where we got to listen to live music and dance in a Scottish ceilidh for Burns’ Night. These international nights also gave us the opportunity to try haggis and hear Robert Burns’ poetry which provided an excellent bit of Scottish culture.
Outside of school and Rotary, I’ve been continuing to play soccer with classmates and other students, be a part of the Spanish language exchange program, attend dance classes, and visit London and Barcelona. Both my program and accommodation are pretty tight-knit so there’s always something to do and I’ve been able to meet so many wonderful people. I recently celebrated the Chinese New Year with my flatmates and we also cooked Christmas dinner together and contributed dishes from our respective countries (unfortunately I cannot cook as well as my flatmates so mine was purchased).
My host club of Corstorphine has been fantastic and it’s always a pleasure to attend their events and meet with the members. I hope to become involved with the Edinburgh Rotaract this semester and to further my involvement with Rotary. My time in Scotland has already been an incredible experience from the people to my studies and I can’t wait to see what the next few months have in store!
Also the pictures I attached in order are: another Global Scholar and I at Betty’s Tea Rooms in Harrowgate, the Global Scholars and I (minus one, there are 5 in Edinburgh from the US, Korea, and Italy) at my host club’s International/ Burns Night, two other Global Scholars and I at the District 1020 Conference, a view of Edinburgh from Arthur’s Seat (which is actually just across the street from where I live!), Calton Hill in Edinburgh on the night before NYE, and a street close to campus.