Field school experiences don’t end when the excavation wraps up or the final survey is complete. For many alumni, the lessons, connections, and opportunities continue to shape their academic paths and professional growth long after they return home. In this post, one alumna shares how she has kept her Belize experience alive through research, networking, and applying skills in the classroom.

One way that I’m staying connected to my field school is by helping my professors in their field report. After our field school was over, Dr. Mixter offered the students a chance to write a few paragraphs of the unit we each worked on, in their field report. This was an amazing opportunity as it would give us firsthand experience on how field reports are created and will allow us to personally bring what we discovered and make it available to the public. I’ve also made connections with other students in our field school who also share my love for archaeology, and we are working together to write the field report.

I also asked for letters of recommendation from both professors to help me provided my credibility as a candidate for future projects or opportunities that may present themselves. These letters will allow me to stand out amongst the competition as it can serve as a testimony of my participation and dedication to this line of work.

I’m currently taking courses in archeological analysis, and I find myself understanding the material faster as I can connect my experience in Belize. I often find myself sharing my experience with classmates so that they can also get a sense of how things are carried out in a field as many of them have not attended a field school.