International Relations

 International Relations

Having settled on an international plan as the most exciting and favorable, I had two options: traveling to either New York or London. After weighing my options, I traveled to New York City, where I would then look for an international company to work for shortly. I chose New York because it seems more industrialized than London; therefore, it is likely to have more international companies. New York also has a bigger population than London, making it more likely to learn from diverse skills and talents. Having lived all my life in Saudia Arabia, I was experiencing a new environment, people, and culture. It was not easy to mingle with the rest of the population. However, through interactions, I acquired a few skills that enabled me to understand why the U.S. thrives in international business.

My first internship was at the Bureau of International Organizations in the U.S., which is mandated with the creation and execution of U.S policies in the United Nations and other international organizations (Wang et al.). In addition, the bureau intensifies U.S. participation in important international affairs activities, specifically UNESCO organizations. International affairs is a political science discipline that deals with international relationships involving trade, global economies, regional security, and stability in global education and health (Iriye).

Fortunately, as I had wished, I also got an opportunity to work in the Saudi Arabia Embassy Us, known as the Saudi Arabian Consulate in Houston. As I had expected, I acquired a lot of knowledge of international affairs. Here I learned the importance of a country having an embassy in another country which involves representing the foreigners in the foreign land and negotiating business dealings. I also learned that for a country to have an embassy in a foreign land, there must be a warm relationship between the two nations. While at the embassy, I took notes of every project or skill I learned.

The main skill I learned from the two organizations was communication. While communication is transferring a message from one person to another, it has different skill levels depending on the people involved. Communication in school and Saudi Arabia was different in both the embassy and the bureau. Communication in the bureau and embassy is planned, organized, and articulated with precision. Every word counts as it is perceived as a representation of the nation. Communication in writing is also done with a lot of precision, including only key points. Speeches have to be passed through several steps for approval before they are finally read to the public or board members. Technology is highly involved in communication as many things are not done manually but electronically to reduce mistakes and increase accuracy.

Overall, I had a mind-blowing experience that opened my mind to international relations. I also grasped the attitude and posture of people working on the international levels. Given a chance in international relations, I’d know what attitude to embrace.

References

Iriye, Akira. Global community: The role of international organizations in the making of the contemporary world. Univ of California Press, 2002.

Wang, Haiyun, and Qinhua Xu. “The Energy Diplomacy of International Organizations.” An Introduction to Energy Diplomacy. Springer, Singapore, 2022. 181-201.