I would have never thought that the academic experience of studying in Boston and in London could be so different. King’s College does not have a specific department for the study of communications, which allowed me to take classes where communication is applied in different disciplines, helping me put my learning in a bigger, and yet more specific context.
Taking Modern Philosophy was a big risk because I hadn’t taken a course that encourages me to reflect about deep questions that govern us as human beings. While the material was extremely interesting, I was fascinated by the way questions and opinions bounced from one corner of the room to the next, inspiring me to listen to incredibly thoughtful ideas from people that come from all around the world. It’s unusual in this day for people to come together as strangers and connect over issues that they feel passionate about.
But in Modern Philosophy, no comment went unnoticed and all voices were heard.
I learned the power of asking questions and listening to others in a class full of people who were willing to engage in a discussion. This class helped me voice my thoughts and locate them in an international context, learning to be open to differences and having conversations that I never thought I’d have.
In addition, I want to become a journalist and use writing and reporting as tools to amplify the voices of people around the world who might feel that their voices are not heard. This is why I took the modules of Toleration and Human Rights in Europe, and Religion, Politics and Global Media. These modules give me the chance to analyze arguments about toleration and political inclusion in an age of mass communication. In relation to my goals, I learned to understand the way constructs are being upheld and the various ways that minorities react against them, unearthing the traditions used to confine them to limited ways of thinking regarding their own rights.
Finally, my last module was Digital Publishing where I analyzed the ways in which digital culture and technology have changed the ways we produce, disseminate and consume information. As a group project for this module, I worked on the development of a digital platform that invites people to make their stories widely available through different media such as writing, photography, audio and art. This project relates to my goal of incorporating my passion for reporting and my interest in social justice issues to tell the stories of people whose narratives go unnoticed. My group project and my professional goal are grounded on the idea of freedom and safety for people to find their voices and share their stories in a word that is becoming increasingly connected through the digitization of information.