One of our students had to opportunity to attend a session of Yale Young Global Scholars this summer. What follows is her eloquent tale of what she learned.
“As I embarked on this two week journey to the foreign American land, I had no idea what I was about to experience. From the lectures of world-leading speakers to discussion sections where thoughts collide to a diverse range of seminars and in-depth Capstone projects, I have transformed into another being.
The open, inviting intellectualism created by this special group of some 200 odd students is truly the distinct characteristic that makes this program so remarkable. We are living testaments to the notion that education at Yale is not reserved to the extravagant and hauntingly beautiful Sterling Library or its lofty lecture buildings, although these are necessary perks, but is accessible through a simple collegial discourse on the grass of JE.
At Yale Young Global Scholars, it only takes a group of loud, inquisitive teenagers to create an atmosphere that truly cries of knowledge. Every dinner, as I broke bread with friends (that I can truly bank on for a lifetime), it only took a few moments to create an engaging discourse; from Grexit to the electoral prospects of 2016 candidates, I found myself having the urge to openly discuss these topics at ease, unafraid of what people may think of my opinions or the simple fact of my having an opinion on worldly issues. It takes a special set of circumstances and context to facilitate such possibilities; it takes people who are willing to not only voice their ideas, but to be receptive to the ideas of others.
My time at Yale truly showed me the limitations of my knowledge, the inherent ignorance that underlies everyone’s limited perspectives; it did this by introducing me to a network of global scholars whose lives contain just as many lessons as a textbook or article can.”
