The start of the new school year has already brought a new outlook to old experiences in my life.

As I walked onto campus this year, I had a strange feeling encompass me. UT was still the same campus I had left in the spring to start the summer, yet, looking out on the orange brick architecture that rose into the blue sky, I couldn’t help but feel as if it was all different. Yet, I know the campus wasn’t any different, apart from the construction and renovations that had been finished and new ones that had been started. What was different was me. I had a different outlook on not only school, but life in general, thanks to an internship.

Over the summer I had done an internship with a company called Southwestern Advantage. I had for three months run my own business in Oklahoma selling educational products to families. I had gained a significant amount of independence through this internship, learned a lot about myself, and was able to increase my skill. In a way, this summer I lived the college experience that many of my fellow peers had, but I also was able to work with a prominent company that helped me gain experience.

As a commuter student, I had felt that I hadn’t really been able to experience the whole college experience to the fullest. I still lived at home and didn’t experience the home sickness most of my friends and peers felt and I also didn’t gain as much independence as others. Over the summer however, I moved in with a host family in Tulsa, Oklahoma and had limited contact with my family. I learned to work past frustrations without turning to my parents for advice and I learned to work past obstacles on my own–I problem solved through tough situations that I wouldn’t have come across if not for this internship. One such example was when I was working out in the country and my tablet with all my maps and order forms died. I had to figure out how to draw maps so that I wouldn’t get lost. I also learned how to communicate really well with the families I met, so that I could get the most accurate information about where to go so I wouldn’t get lost.

Not only did I learn to overcome tough obstacles, I gained a positive outlook on life, a can-do attitude, and an attitude of gratitude. I found that I can do anything as long as I do not give up and remember that in the end everything will be okay, and if it’s not okay, it’s not the end. Because of the great mentors I had, I found out how resilient I can be in times of adversity–not only did I not give up, I pushed through the days that I felt like giving up. I also learned that it’s okay to feel, but that even though you may be really emotional, you can work past frustrations and overcome those emotions.

Besides just gaining a better outlook, I improved my communication skills with individuals through both face-to-face contact and through social media. As a journalism and electronic media major, communication is a key component to any job in the journalism field. Through this internship, I improved my communication skills so I could clearly communicate about the products I was selling and to better inform myself about the needs of the families I was selling to. I also learned about the sales cycle and how to run my own business–from meeting individuals, to dealing with finances, to marketing my name and the product, to delivery and closing deals. Now, that may not sound like something a journalist may need, but it does help one to understand how businesses work, and as my journalist professor Fontenot says, journalism is a business.

So, as I walked onto campus August 23, 2017, it wasn’t the school that had changed. It was me. I had changed a lot this summer. I had a different outlook on everything, from the connections I made with people, to the classes I was taking, to the assignments I would have, to the way I say my college experience in general. I used to have a certain outlook on college life, an expectation of how the college experience would be. That changed last year. This year, I found that I have grown personally through college. Yes, this may have been a summer internship, but it has already effected how this school year has gone. I am now even more prepared to take on challenges, to work harder at achieving great grades, to participate more in writing for The Daily Beacon, and to be a better student.