If I were to describe my experience in Turkey to an interviewer, I would definitely talk about the fact that this really was a HANDS-ON experience in every way. Nothing was theoretical or in a typical classroom setting — pretty much everything we learned, we learned by doing. Even the readings and discussions always tied back to things we could specifically reference and connect from our work on the dig site. I feel like this is really important to emphasize, since there’s a big difference between taking a class and reading the manuals and theories and such (also important!!) and actually going to work every day and seeing how archaeology as a real practice unfolds.
I would also want an interviewer to know about the non-archaeological skills I gained while in Turkey. First of all, I can now say that I’ve worked in a foreign country, which in and of itself I think is a pretty cool thing to say during a job interview. I could point to how living and working in a totally different environment has taught me a lot about being adaptable — to language barriers, to lifestyle differences, to kind of crazy work schedules, to (extreme) weather differences, etc. I think my experiences with all of these changes has not only made me a lot more confident navigating changes in my academic/professional life, but has also made me more prepared (and excited) for future travel/work outside of America and/or the English-speaking world. I feel like a lot of the future careers that I’m interested in involve studying, researching, and working in foreign countries, so my time in Turkey is like my first step into that kind of life.
And now a list (partially for my own use) of skills I’ve learned here that also apply to various research/fieldwork jobs I’ve thought about in the past:
- (Careful) photography (took some images today 😎.. going pro)
- Keeping field notes and compiling notes/data
- Working with a small team of people
- Working with a BIG team of people (i.e. first days of clearing when we were all running around to different areas of the site)
- Flexibility on the work site (many problems occur! That’s okay)
P.S. hi Boss Lady Audrey