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Department ofModern Languages and Literatures

Students share why they studied languages

Jamie Staudt, Spanish Major, Class of 2010
Former Program Coordinator at The Health Trust

Studying Spanish at Santa Clara University was a huge part of my personal and career development.  The curriculum focused on service-learning and social justice, sent me off campus to learn about the issues facing residents in the university’s surrounding communities, while using my Spanish in a practical setting.  Experience in the community through the Arrupe Partnerships program connected me to the Health Trust, a public health non-profit and foundation in San Jose, where I was hired full-time as a program coordinator after graduation.  Skills in Spanish were essential for my role as the event coordinator for the annual Open Air Health Fair, as well as for many other projects in health promotion and services.  Employment in the public health sector solidified my goal to pursue medicine, and has motivated to serve communities in need.  I know Spanish skills will help me to become a culturally competent physician and broaden the populations I can reach and serve.