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By Max Pollard, Bachelor of Psychology
It is both exciting and odd to say that I have finally arrived at the end of my undergraduate life. Reaching this point in my journey has brought an immense amount of reflection about what I have learned throughout my time in the GLP and all the memories I have made. Although in the moment it may not feel like a big undertaking, it is crazy to think that the GLP has led me to complete over 250+ hours worth of a variety of experiences in different countries.
Looking back on my time in the GLP I have been lucky enough to have many different experiences. One of the most impact ones was going to the Canberra Symposium. This involved meeting with a variety of key stakeholders in both Australian/International governments, discussing important social issues with thought leaders and receiving extremely insightful career advice. Never would I have thought I would be able to achieve all of this in three days but I walked away truly inspired about my future direction.
The second experience of note was my time abroad in South Korea. Over the summer session break I travel to Seoul to study Korean at SNU’s Language Education Center. For 3 months I went to school 5 days a week and continued my journey of developing my Korean proficiency. During this time I was able to completely immerse myself in a different yet familiar culture, learn different and surprising things and develop a whole new appreciation for a different way of thinking and living.
After not only these experiences but all the others I have had during the GLP I was left with some questions. How do I use all of this experience and make it worthwhile? Is it okay if I want to change my intended career plan? What am I still not able to do? However, what I have come to realise is that having these questions is not a bad thing by any means. In fact, I believe them to be a main benefit to the GLP experience; to get you to think about how you can truly go into the world after university.
The insight I am most grateful for from the GLP is that a career that allows me to work internationally and work and live in different cultures is not a far-fetched dream. I will be able to apply my degree to any setting in which I truly have the drive to work and in the long run, it won't be the degree that defines me it will be how much I push myself to work towards my passions.
So that is what I am going to do. I am going to try my hardest to use the skills I have learned during my journey thus far and try to apply them wherever I can. Starting next year I will be travelling back to South Korea to continue my Korean studies and hopefully, another door may open.
I want to finish off by sharing a couple of pieces of advice I have for people still on their journey with the GLP:
Challenge yourself. There are so many different ways you can complete your 200 credit points but I strongly urge you to choose the activities that are going to take you out of your comfort zone as these will be the times when you gain the most insights and skills to help you along your career
Be open-minded. Not everything you do as part of your GLP will be something that resonates with you but if you do not let yourself hear a different perspective you will not be able to grow from the opportunities you are given
Connect. You should try to make as many connections as possible during your time in the program. Whether they be fellow students, GLP advisors, or professional connections, all of them will provide meaningful full support to you.
Lastly, I would like to give a massive thank you to all the GLP staff who have helped me along the way. You have truly been the most caring and supportive part of my university experience.
Best of luck to the rest of your GLP journey!