Am I happy to be home? Yes. Do I wish I was back in Vietnam exploring more of the country? Definitely. From the welcome ceremony to getting on the bus back to the airport to go home, UEF student and staff gave us the best experience in the country I could have asked for. The amount of friendships and memories I have made and will carry throughout life in innumerable. I cannot thank everyone enough for taking the time to host and work with Pitt to teach us so much in such little time.

Not only will I take memories and friendships out of this trip, I have gained and strengthened more transferable skills that I will be able to use whenever they are needed. One transferable skill I strengthened was flexibility and adaptability. Our schedule was tentative throughout the entire trip so we had to be ready for change at any moment whether it be an earlier lunch or no break between specific tasks, we had to adapt to the change and adjust how we act. This skill was shown when our six-hour layover turned into a ten-hour layover then an eleven-hour layover. Since there was nothing we could do to fix this issue, we had to be flexible with whatever the airline threw at us next. Thankfully there were several of us stuck in the airport so we were able to wander around and have fun until our plane was ready for us. Flexibility is one of the most important skills to have because you never know when something is going to change.

Another transferable skill I strengthened was actively listening. Active listening is when you are able to comprehend the information you are given and be able to form relevant questions for the lecturer to answer. During the VinaCapital site visit, since it was the company I later had to present about, I was testing my skills and struggling to ask relevant questions but I feel I successfully got all the information I needed as shown in our final presentation of the company. Actively listening allows you to gain more specific information in shorter time and is essential when learning new things.

While working with my team to create a presentation about VinaCapital, I realized I was in a situation I had never been before; I was the weak link in the group due to my lack of knowledge of business principles. When I realized this, I worked harder to contribute to the group and believe our final presentation was a success. Since I have never experienced being the weak link in the group until now, I now have a new perspective of what other team members may feel during projects and can work to adjust to ensure everyone is able to contribute equally to a final successful product.