As my time in Florence is coming to a close, I have made so many new friends and connections the past four weeks. The close proximity and small group really drives connections between me and my peers. We all have class together for four or five hours a day and all the girls live in the same housing complex, so we are able to spend a lot of time together studying, learning, and making memories. Because of the amount of time spent together, we have become close friends and are already planning to have a pasta dinner when we get back to school in the fall!

Also, I have made connections with my professors during this global experience. The two engineering professors, Dr. Bilec and Dr. Robertson are both very experienced women in engineering and I think that they will be a valuable resource to have in the future. Mentorship from senior faculty members is very important so I am very grateful that I have two women that I can reach out to for advice about further schooling or my career path.