Yale Young Global Scholars

I had the spontaneous idea in January of 2020 to apply to Yale Young Global Scholars (YYGS). I was researching summer programs and stumbled across the application. 

At the time, the program was to be held on Yale's campus and promised to bring students from 190 countries together. I was applying to the Biology and Biomedical Sciences session, and if I got in, I would go to campus during the summer of 2020. 

Then there was COVID, so I deferred my enrollment hoping to get a chance to go to New Haven in person. But, in December, we heard that the program would, unfortunately, be virtual. 

I was like great, there's nothing I can do about it. In reality, though, it was a huge bummer. I was supposed to meet international students and talk about science on a beautiful campus, but yet again, my learning was confined to a screen. 

So, I was actually not expecting too much from the virtual program. I thought my experience would be centered mostly around the science lectures and the final project. 

I was wrong.

I can tell you some of what we were taught and a bit about the final projects, but I can more easily tell you the names and interests of the students in my family group. I can tell you what school has been like in Uganda, and I can tell you why some students don't want to get their licenses in Ukraine. 

What I thought was going to be a purely scientific experience turned out to be incredible global exposure. Yes, I was not on campus physically interacting with my peers, but YYGS, luckily, turned out to be way more than I had expected from a virtual program. 

I think that I'm going to advertise the program to Poly Global Scholars this year - I truly believe that it was one of the more rewarding global programs I've done.