Internationality

After living in the United States for 22 years, I had never traveled outside North America. After deciding to embark on a "once and a lifetime" trip, Jaclyn and I decided to extend it into a one year Master's program that continues to be a gift that keeps on giving. Living abroad is not easy; there have been several times where I have questioned the choice of completing a Master's in England. However, it is the experience that continues to prove the legitamicy of our choice. One of the perks of this experience is gaining the insight and opportunity to work with people from different cultures all over the world. Bournemouth University just recently was named one of the world's most international universities, and the exposure to these cultures has been nothing short of jaw dropping and eye opening, along with solidifying a greater appreciation for my own American culture.

My teammates cultures:

- America

- Britian

- Germany

- Bulgaria

- Finland

- Switzerland

- Poland

- Greece

- Cyprus

- Italy

- Algeria

Overcoming cultural differences has been a trying task, and the language barrier with various accents continues to prove itself to be a challenge. However, day by day, the team has stuck together and worked to improve our performance, and the results have been worthwhile. We recently took 1st in the BUCS South Division (UK eqivalent of a conference championship), along with backing a 1st place finish for Back to Back to Back (3X) Champions at the VB England Student Cup.

"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard" - Tim Notke