Work Experience 2013

Last week the junior high and high school students participated in a program run by the Mercy Ships Academy called Work Experience. We were given a list of some jobs on the ship and had to apply be e-mail to work in one of the roles. Students were accepted or denied based on their applications. Some examples of positions are rehab assistant, school office assistant, ward nurse, eye team technician, cook, IS assistant, sales assistant, receptionist, and electrical assistant. After we all had a position, we went to work for a week!

I worked as a photographer. I took pictures of the other students doing their jobs as well as events such as the plastics screening and Rotary conference. I was suprised by how long it took to edit and label all the photos after I had taken them.

After the week was over, we had to analyze our experiences. I discovered that being a photographer on the Africa Mercy has a lot of perks. In this role I got to interact with patients when going to the wards to take their photos. I worked inside an office sometimes but also got to go off ship. I could be creative with my work and share what the organization and this nation are like in a visual format.

The most challenging part of the experience was using an SLR. I have a point-and-shoot camera that I know how to use well, but for the purposes of work I had to use a much larger and more complex camera. However, after the first few days I could use the SLR fairly well and improved my skills steadily throughout the week.

Last year, I worked as a writer and journalist. Both year's experiences go together in a way. They are part of the communications department onboard and are ways to share information. When I leave school I may become a photographer and journalist professionally, since I enjoy this type of job, but I am still waiting to see what God wants for my future.

Unfortunately, I cannot show you pictures I took since I only have them on a CD. The JPG versions that are stored on a computer have been kept by the communications department, as they technically belong to Mercy Ships. I did have a great time taking photos during Work Experience though! Getting an education onboard the Africa Mercy is truly a wonderful opportunity!