Hi, my name is Colin and I am excited to join you all for our Plus 3 program in Vietnam.

Traveling around the globe is one of the best ways to meet new people, empathize with other cultures, and be pushed out of your personal comfort zone.  Naturally,  I was psyched to be accepted for this trip! In one month, we will embark on an experience that will expose us to the inner workings of business in one of Southeastern Asia’s fastest growing economies.  It will be interesting to further my development in networking, and to understand the acceptable business practices within what was once a strictly Communist country.  It is incredible that Pitt offers this once in a life time experience which will educate us all, in ways that we could never have imagined.

I came down to Pittsburgh from Hartford, CT.  Immediately after touring the city and campus, I knew that this urban and academic environment was a good fit for me.  On top of that, I was privileged to be accepted into the College of Business Administration, now ranked #49 on Bloomberg Business Weeks’s “Top 50 Business Schools in the Country.”  Although I have been lucky to meet a variety of friends from many different backgrounds, it will be great to get to know each of you better on this 2-week adventure.  A friend of mine, who recently embarked on the “Plus 3 Vietnam,” told me that he still meets up with his fellow travelers to reminisce about the memories and all the fun that they had on this trip.  I am positive that our group will be lucky enough to make these same life-long friendships.

College is a time for personal growth and development, meeting various kinds of people, and progressing through the crazy process of going from childhood to adulthood.  There is no doubt in my mind that this experience will help us achieve these objectives and more.  It will be fascinating to explore the urban environment in Ho Chi Minh City, to descend into the Cu Chi tunnels, and to take a leap of faith when trying an exotic meal.  A unique part about our trip is that we will actually get to pair up with Vietnamese students, who are our age, from the University of Economics and Finance.  It will be interesting to see how different or similar certain aspects of their lives are from ours.  Also, it will be intriguing to see how the “American War” did and still does impact the lives of Ho Chi Minh’s residents.

It is amazing that our journey begins so soon.  Again, I am ecstatic to be going on this trip.  Let the adventure begin!