It has now been a week since touching back down in Glasgow, I’ve moved back to my flat in town and I can’t believe that summer is over. On the plane back from Heathrow to Glasgow my feeling of sadness set in and the thought that I would be returning back to everyday Scottish life was a daunting prospect. Now after being back for a week I feel much more settled and I’m looking forward to getting back into the university way of life. I feel that I have a lot more direction about what I want to achieve this year and for that I want to thank the Wood Group and Saltire Foundation.

Its been a couple of weeks since my last blog so I should update you on how we spent our final week in Texas. We were all very aware of how little time we had left to fit everything in so all of us were rushing around to squeeze in what we wanted to do! It was a busy week. Kirsty and I spent a lot of time in the Galleria, the huge shopping mall, and buying as much candy as we could possibly fit into our cases!

We were lucky enough to be taken on a VIP trip of NASA allowing us to see the really cool areas of the Johnson Space Centre. I have to be honest, I don’t know a great deal about space, NASA or the general going on of the whole place but it was pretty cool! We got to go to mission control, the NBL, building 9, and the old Apollo mission control centre. The day was fantastic and I want to say thanks to Val and her contacts at NASA for giving us such a great experience, I’m sure we will all remember it for years to come!

In the office for the final week myself, Anton and Dave were giving a Wood Group quiz by Anand Chawla, on our general knowledge of the organisation, the people within the organisation and the Houston area. It was a great way to end our time here and encouraged us to go and speak to people who we may not have otherwise had a chance to. The three of us became a bit competitive and unfortunately Anton did not quite live up to mine and Dave’s Wood Group knowledge.  

Friday saw the final lunch with our Wood Group team, as we sat in the all American board room which we walked into 8 weeks previously couldn’t believe that this was the end. Everyone that we had worked us came and ate with us to see us off. It was clear when chatting amongst ourselves and our colleagues that each of us have gained something different from our Saltire experience. We all agreed however that it was a life changing experience which we will never forget. Personally I think I have learned a lot about myself and have found direction in terms of my academic and professional career. I now know what I need to do to achieve my personal goals and with the vast network of individuals I have made whilst in the states I know that I will always be able to ask for advice.

I want to thank everyone that has made this summer possible to our GlobalScots John Lee and Derek Blackwood thank you so much for being part of this programme and guiding us along the way. To Valerie Mathieu, Maribel Socorro, Joan Jurek, Anana Chawla, Stuart Robertson, Gordon Gorrie, Alistair Ross, Frank Henry, Bobbie Ireland, Mallory Bucker, Gary Phillips, Kenisha Chatman I loved working with everyone of you ! To the Saltire foundation team who made the whole thing possible I look forward to helping you give this experience to others in coming years.

Finally I want to thank my fellow “Team WG” interns Kirsty, Anton, Scott, Dave and John. I had the most amazing time with you all and loved all the adventures which we had- thank you for the best summer ever.

So now, what to do with myself? Finish my last year at Glasgow University and then who knows… I’ll keep you updated.

 Until next time,

Jen