Cover Story
Developing a new mindset
“W Matthew Keaton Computer Engineering and Computer Science
24
2018
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ENGINEERINGWV MAGAZINE
hen I left WVU and my home in Morgantown to travel 24-plus hours by plane to Melbourne, Australia, I started to really think about what spending a semester at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and this new continent were going to mean to me. I have always been interested in traveling and seeing as much of the world as possible, and I was excited to immerse myself in a culture that was somewhat foreign to my own. I knew that being an outsider in a new place would allow me to gain some world experience and learn a lot of new things, and still my expectations for the trip ended up being completely exceeded. My experience in Australia grew into much more than I ever imagined, and I’m certain that it will have a lasting impact on my life. Through my university, or ‘uni’ as Australians call it, I was able to meet people from all backgrounds, as almost half of RMIT’s student base is comprised of international students. When classes started, I probably learned more about other cultures than I did Australia’s, something I hadn’t expected but certainly welcomed. I also met a lot of people by joining several clubs. Australians tend to be much more outdoorsy than Americans and RMIT’s outdoors club had a huge following so I decided to join. I was able
FALL
to experience driving on the left-hand side of the road to several different nearby towns, national parks and beaches where I enjoyed hiking, rock climbing, swimming in icy water, petting kangaroos and wombats and enjoying stunning views. I even went to an Australian football game. Go Magpies! There was always something new to explore, but the courses at RMIT were equally interesting. One of my favorite classes was Introduction to Australian Society, which focused on the complexity of Australian culture, from food, to sports and lifestyle, to the country’s diversity and the indigenous Australian population. The course helped me to learn and understand more about their culture than I ever could have learned on my own. As a bonus, most of the courses I took were also a continuation of my computer engineering and computer science majors at WVU, which meant I wasn’t falling behind while studying abroad. Through all of these different experiences, I was able to obtain a well-defined picture of Australia and its culture. I had heaps of fun during my stay in the land down under but the real takeaways are far beyond the good times. I came home with a new mindset that allows me to appreciate the small differences in other cultures and have a better understanding of the similarities that make us all human.
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