Internship Blog - Alyssa Cypher, Post #2

Language Studies While in Graduate School

I'm writing this blog post from my dorm room in Podgorica, Montenegro! Podgorica is a gorgeous city full of contrasts - crumbling socialist Yugoslavia-style architecture against a background of gorgeous mountains. It's very different from Zagreb, Croatia (where I studied three summers ago), which reminded me a lot of Pittsburgh. Podgorica is like no city I've ever been to, and I hope to describe it in more detail once I've been here longer than a week. 

Now that I'm taking a break from my internship to immerse myself in a new culture, I figure this will be a good chance to discuss language study while in graduate school. Trying to fit a language study into your schedule can be a challenge; however, I truly believe language study is worth the extra time and effort. Here are some ways I've made language study easier for myself:

The FLAS!

During my first year at GSPIA I was on a Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship (FLAS) from the US Department of Education. The FLAS is a government fellowship available in a number of areas and languages. To apply, your university must have a designated National Resource Center (NRC) in your chosen language group. For the 2010-2013 grant period (NRC status is renewed every four years), Pitt had NRCs in Latin American, International, and Russian/East Europe/Eurasian studies. The fellowship pays full tuition plus a sizable living stipend (mine was $18,000) for language and area studies in your chosen language. If Pitt offers a FLAS in a language you are interested in, I highly recommend applying! Applications usually go out around December for the following academic year. 

Summer Study Abroad and the Summer Language Institute!

Studying abroad is a great way to learn or improve your language skills. If you want to focus on language studies, the Summer Language Institute (SLI) is a great time-saving option for learning Russian/East European/near East languages - you can take two semesters-worth of language instruction in 6-8 weeks! These courses are intense (5 hours a day, 5 days a week, 6-8 weeks long), but highly effective and a perfect option for students who cannot fit language study into their academic year course schedule. In addition, SLI offers month-long study abroad language courses in several different cities - I'm currently doing four weeks of intensive Montenegrin (or BCMS) in Podgorica. I also need to note that this is my third summer spent participating in an SLI program - a testimony to the awesomeness of SLI.

Overall language study in graduate school, while not easy, is not as difficult as it seems. The resources are out there if you search for them. Here are links to information about the resources I've talked about - the FLAS (http://www2.ed.gov/programs/iegpsflasf/index.html) and SLI (http://www.slavic.pitt.edu/node/243).

Until next time!

The view of Podgorica from my dorm

Internship Blog - Allie Reefer, Post #4

Fountain at Kaštel-Ečka, a hunting-lodge turned hotel in Ečka, Serbia

With only a month left in Belgrade, I’ve had plenty of time to evaluate my experiences here, to see what it takes to actually combat human trafficking in this region and to see if working in/with this region is actually something I want to do.

My time here certainly hasn’t been easy, and sometimes, it’s been downright discouraging. I’ve learned that in order to work in most organizations abroad, you have to have a working knowledge of the language to be of any significant help. I’ve been able to work on English-language grant proposals and put together information about labor trafficking in the region, but every meeting and training seminar I’ve attended has been in Serbian. Knowing the language hasn’t been much of a hindrance except in being able to fully grasp the opinions, thoughts, and understandings of people on the issue of human trafficking. And thankfully, I’ve met enough people working with trafficking who speak English to be able to get a better grasp. 

Most Ljubavi (Bridge of Love) in Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia

 But that hasn’t been my only discouragement. Being in the international development field (at least for me), makes it easy to go between feelings of unrealistic ambition and hopeless resignation. One minute, I’m dreaming about implementing long-term solutions to human trafficking in Eastern Europe, and the next, I’m wondering if I should have just stuck with a journalism career after all. Whether I’m in Serbia or the United States, these feelings often come from gaining the knowledge of what types of projects will target root causes of modern-day slavery followed by the realization that no one is actually bothering to carry these solutions out. Because they take time. And money. Two things that, in our fast-paced world, are hard to come by and not willingly or easily given out.

The overwhelming, and usually pessimistic, thoughts have flooded my mind almost every day: How am I ever going to learn these languages? What do I really have to offer these countries and people? If no one else is actually implementing long-term change, how will I do it? Should I just worry about taking care of the victims rather than preventing more trafficking from, inevitably, happening?

After five years of dedicating my time, resources, energy, and academics to this topic, it can be really disheartening. What if everything I’ve done is in vain?

And then I have to stop myself—because ultimately what I’m doing is not about me at all. Sometimes I get frustrated in certain classes or even conversations because to a lot of people, human rights and human development are means to an end, but to me, these are the end. National security, economic prosperity, global influence and power—these mean nothing if a majority of the population is not only living in squalor but intentionally being neglected. According to economics or security or politics, enabling human growth and focusing on human rights may not be the most beneficial path. But a human life is more important than even a million of the most valuable currency on earth.

For me, that’s enough to keep going because I ultimately know that this is what I should be doing with my life. I don’t know if I’ll ever become fluent in Russian, or learn any other Slavic languages for that matter. I don’t know if I’ll be working in Vienna or DC or Pittsburgh. I don’t know if my name will be someday known globally or only by my friends and family. But it doesn’t matter, really.