Writing Good Reflections | International Reflection | Internship Reflection | Leadership Reflection | Research Reflection | Service Reflection
Reflections are submitted to the GGSS online portal system. You can access the portal by following one of the below steps:
- GGSS Website > Scholars tab > Portal Login
- Login to my.fsu.edu > Click Research and Recognition drop-down menu on the left-hand side > Click Garnet and Gold Scholar Society link
Reflection Status
Reflections are approved by Area Approvers in each engagement area. Area Approvers have 2 weeks to review your submission from the date you submitted it online. You will receive an email notifying to check the status of your submission once the Area Approver submits their evaluation. To view your evaluation feedback from the Area Approver, log into your GGSS account and click on the area tab, then click on the link “Needs Revision-View Submission & Feedback” (on right-hand side of page).Your reflection will have one of these statuses:
- In Progress: You have not submitted the reflection for your engagement activity.
- Submitted: Your reflection is awaiting evaluation and feedback from the Area Approver.
- Needs Revision: You received a score of 1 or 2 on one or more Rubric elements for that area. If you receive this status the Area Approver will have given you feedback on what you need to improve. You have one (1) week from date of evaluation (including holidays and weekends) to revise and resubmit your final reflection attempt.
- Awaiting Final Approval: Your final attempt for the reflection is awaiting evaluation and feedback from the Area Approver.
- Rejected: You received a score of 1 or 2 on one or more Rubric elements for the area on your final reflection attempt.
- Approved Pending Completion: Your reflection was approved but the actual activity has not yet completed because you are participating in it during the current semester.
- Approved: Your reflection and Engagement Area activities are completed.
If the student's reflection does not meet all 4 areas of learning as shown in the grading rubric, it will require a revision.The student only has one additional attempt to revise their reflection in order to complete the engagement area. If a revision is required, the student has one (1) week (including holidays and weekends) from the date of the evaluation to resubmit the reflection to the online portal system. The student may contact the Area Approver for feedback if a submission needs revision. If your reflection is rejected a second time or you miss a deadline, you must submit a formal appeal in order to continue with the program.
Please see the reflection deadlines here.
Writing Good Reflections
As you write your reflections, consider these tips:
- Read ALL of the questions you are expected to answer and plan out what you will write.
- Review the rubric for each area so you know how your submission will be graded.
- Be sure to talk about your complete experience. For example, if you are writing a Leadership reflection, be sure to talk about BOTH Leadership activities. If you are writing an International reflection, discuss BOTH the intercultural communications course and your abroad experience.
- Write your reflections in Microsoft Word first. This will help with basic grammar and spelling issues and will give you a copy for your records.
- After running Word's spell check, proof read and check for grammar and spelling with your own eyes! If you need assistance with writing skills, check out the Reading Writing Center.
- Follow these instructions for transferring the content from your Word document to the online submission form.
*Note: Area Approvers reserve the right to reject your reflections if you fail to use standard English grammar and spelling.
Engagement Area Reflection Questions
International Reflection
Please provide specific examples and answer all of the prompts below using 200-250 words for each response.
- Think about the new things you learned about a culture other than your own, be it something you saw or a person you met. Explain one new discovery you made about that culture. Explain how your own cultural history shaped this interaction.
- Describe an interaction with an individual whose culture/customs, ethnicity, attitudes, values, opinions, and ideas were different from your own. How does this engagement affect your perception of their culture and vice versa?
- Explain how you adjusted your behavior, your views, and your perceptions during your time abroad (intellectually, emotionally, socially, politically, etc.).
- What plans do you have to continue to grow and build upon your international experience.
If a student is completing the Global Citizenship Certificate option, they will reflect on their experiences through the program's site and are not required to submit responses to the prompts above. However, you must still indicate you are completing the program by logging into the GGSS Student Portal > Click on the Engagement Area tab > Submit your selection for Global Citizenship Certificate (International tab) by the reflection deadlines.
International Reflection Evaluation Rubric
Internship Reflection
Please provide specific examples and answer all of the prompts below using 200-250 words for each response.
- Provide an overview of your Internship Experience.
- Describe your general impressions of the organization and your responsibilities.
- Describe the nature of the orientation, training and supervision provided by the internship organization.
- Describe the relationships that you developed with other interns, staff, administrators and your supervisor as well as your ability to expand your professional network.
- Describe your accomplishment of learning objectives, personal and professional growth and increased self confidence resulting from the internship.
- Describe how you increase your skills, knowledge, and how you expanded your professional network.
The Experience Recognition Program (ERP) already includes a reflection element and you are not expected to reflect through the Garnet and Gold Scholar Society questions in the portal. However, you must still indicate you are completing the program by logging into the Student Portal > Click on the Engagement Area tab > Submit your selection for Experience Recognition Program (Internship tab) by the reflection deadlines.
Internship Reflection Evaluation Rubric
Leadership Reflection
Please provide specific examples and answer all of the prompts below using 200-250 words for each response.
- Describe your leadership experiences and articulate what you have learned about the practices of effective leadership
- Describe the impact your experience had on your capacity to respect multiple perspectives and build collaborative working relationships with others across differences.
- What have you learned in order to enhance your leadership capacity?
- How will you apply what you have learned about leadership in your future endeavors? Include your reflections on what you believe you still need to learn to be more effective in your leadership capacity.
Leadership Reflection Evaluation Rubric
Research Reflection
Please provide specific examples and answer all of the prompts below using 200-250 words for each response.
- List the key steps of your research experience or creative project.
- Briefly describe your project in terms of what you have learned and how it has expanded or enhanced your undergraduate experience at FSU. How has your research shaped your understanding of the way knowledge evolves?
- Describe the specific skills, knowledge and abilities that you used and new ones you acquired through your project.
- Research is collaboration among people drawing from both previous and current ideas. It involves entering an ongoing conversation in your field of study. Who did you collaborate with on this project and how did the relationship shape your work? How did you contribute to or engage with the ongoing discussion in your field?
- How does your research contribute to the development of your field and how has it prepared you for the next stage of your life and career?
- Research requires you to be adaptable. Briefly describe how you had to adapt to the challenges of your project once it was underway. Were you faced with any unexpected circumstances that had to be addressed, and if so, how did you handle these?
- What did your research reveal to you? Did your hypothesis or initial vision for your project match your findings or final product?
Research Reflection Evaluation Rubric
Service Reflection
Please provide specific examples and answer all of the prompts below using 200-250 words for each response.
- Describe your most significant service experiences and describe the knowledge and skills you were able to utilize in your service. Include knowledge and skills you brought into your experiences and that in which you learned during your experiences.
- How has your service experience enhanced your compassion for others? This can include those you served and those who are involved in this social issue in other ways as well. Please explain and use examples of support.
- Based on your service experiences, which community needs or social issues were you able to address? What have you learned specifically about these community needs or injustices?
- Based on your service experiences, which specific practices of responsible citizenship will you commit to and how will this be evident in the immediate futrue (1-2 years) and distant future (5-10 years or more)?