Student Diplomat Questions

The following questions are intended to help guide your thoughts as you write your essay addressing one of the three contest questions for the Student Diplomat Essay Competition.

Desire For Deeper Understanding
If your decision to study abroad was based on goals to learn firsthand about other cultures and global issues, consider whether the experience met your objectives. How did you develop a deeper and more nuanced understanding of your host country, world region, America? How did your location influence your study abroad experience?

Impact On Your Career Path
Is there a connection between your experience of studying abroad and your career choice or organizational, community, or leadership involvement? Please be specific.

Awareness Or Appreciation Of Your Identity

How were you perceived as an American when you first arrived in your host country? Did this perception change over the course of your stay? Did living in a foreign country help you to see America in a new perspective, and how? Were there certain rights, opportunities, or services you took for granted and now value more, or less? Please consider specific examples or anecdotes. How did this shift in perspective affect you?

The “A-HA” Moment!
Was there a particular experience, break-through, or defining moment when you became comfortable in your host culture and became aware of your connection to America, the world, and your host country?

Civic Involvement
Did you participate in local political affairs or take part in an international campaign or movement while abroad? Did this influence you, and how? Do you feel you are better informed about politics and government affairs in the United States because of your experience abroad? Has it encouraged you to become more or less involved in civic participation in the United States?

Being An American Ambassador
Did you engage in discussions abroad with people to whom you had to explain U.S. policy? Through your interactions, how did you contribute to their understanding of “America?”  Did your study abroad experience make you more aware of or help you to understand U.S. foreign policy?

World Citizenship
In what ways did your experience shape how you see yourself as a world citizen? How did it inform your worldview? What values did you gain from studying abroad? What lessons will you carry forward?