STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

Brittany Bates Junior
Hi! My name is Brittany Bates, and I am a junior in Global Studies, minoring in Hunger Studies. I grew up never knowing what I wanted to do for a job, just knowing I wanted to “help people” in some capacity. After falling in love with work I was doing on a mission trip my sophomore year of high school, my dad pointed out a major called Global Studies. I had never heard of it, but it sounded like something I wanted to learn more about. After my freshman year of college, I knew I had found the right path.

When people ask me what I’m going to school for and I reply with my major, nine times out of ten I get a confused face looking at me. “Elaborate,” they say. Until recently, I still was not sure in what way I wanted to help, but the more time I have spent in this major, the more I have narrowed it down. After taking a class called “Hunger: Causes, Consequences, & Responses,” as well as volunteering at Meals on Wheels of Coweta, I realized I could combine my love for the elderly population and helping people by getting a minor in Hunger to research and implement solutions to food insecurity for the aging population.

Global Studies requires an internship as part of the program of study. For my internship, I had the privilege of working with a nonprofit already close to my heart. I have had the opportunity to get in on the groundwork of building a women’s prison ministry, Open Heavens Ministry, and to see the behind-the-scenes work that goes into making something successful. Here I have brainstormed ways to expand our ministry, researched and comprised a contact list of prisons in nearby states, been a supporting partner for local conferences, and created and ran social media platforms. My little piece of this puzzle, I am confident, has given me a network for the future and lifelong friends.

The study abroad requirement was another important contributing factor in my decision to select Global Studies as my major. Auburn University offers many incredible opportunities to experience study abroad around the world. I look forward to deciding upon a study abroad program that will aid me in better understanding global hunger and how I may have an impact on reducing the struggles faced by an impoverished global population.

I am immensely grateful for the opportunities Global Studies in Human Sciences has given me. It has taught me much about the big picture of where I am today and how to dream bigger.