Studying abroad can transform your college experience and your life. And 萝莉视频 University has the tools you鈥檒l need to get you there.
Almost every major can participate, and 萝莉视频 already has more than 20 partner universities across the globe.
Shannon Daly, academic services coordinator in the Study Abroad Office, listed several advantages to spending a semester abroad. When you study in a foreign country, you are not just learning from textbooks; you are living the culture, language and history of that place.
Perhaps most important of all 鈥� you鈥檒l learn more about yourself and your capabilities. Studying abroad is a journey of self-discovery. It challenges you to step out of your comfort zone and adapt to new environments.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to be immersed in something new. It鈥檚 a learning experience you wouldn鈥檛 get otherwise. You鈥檒l find interesting things you probably wouldn鈥檛 discover as a tourist,鈥� she added.
Daly, a first-generation student at another university, spent a summer in Seoul, South Korea, studying global entrepreneurship and digital design for four weeks before taking an additional two weeks to explore. Part of her decision to go there was a fascination with K-pop culture at the time. Once she arrived she knew it was the right decision, so much so that she made it her career to help other students do the same.
鈥淚 can relate to students who say they have too much going on to even think of doing this,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut it turned out to be the transformational experience I needed at that time. So if it seems too overwhelming, don鈥檛 be afraid to ask for help.鈥�
Daly said studying abroad allows you to connect with other cultures and gain a well-rounded view of your degree from different perspectives. While it鈥檚 probably a good idea to have some familiarity with the language and culture before departing, Daly says many programs are taught in English, so total fluency isn鈥檛 necessarily required.
Kat Nickel is a theatre major currently studying in Prague. Nickel said she is gaining many new perspectives by learning her major in another country, including in subjects she鈥檚 already covered stateside. One introductory class exercise was a discussion about international conflicts that involved multiple nations.
鈥淪omething that stuck out to me was when all the countries had overlap, and within that, how each person described it,鈥� she noted. 鈥淲hen it came to wars, and Americas part in them, students from other countries described the situation completely different than what any of us American students had been taught in our high school systems. This just solidified that I needed to be here to learn a different side of history due to the blind spots in our education.鈥�
Studying abroad can also enhance your academic and professional prospects. You can create and find opportunities that you might not have access to at home. It can open doors to research opportunities, internships and other experiences beyond a traditional semester.
Safety and Support
Nickel recommends checking in with the Study Abroad Office well before your planned departure date. Daly suggests a minimum of one semester before and preferably two. It could take the following academic year to get everything set up, including a student visa approval process that might take a while and could unexpectedly change according to the host country. 萝莉视频 is part of Academic Programs International, a service that helps streamline the process and keeps students on track before and during their trip.
The Study Abroad Office provides support and resources to help you navigate the process, from obtaining visas to finding scholarships. Many programs offer scholarships to make studying abroad accessible.
Student safety is a top priority. Daly receives regular bulletins on world affairs to help ensure that host countries are safe for students. They also have guidelines and suggestions for each country to help you stay out of trouble 鈥� culturally, legally or otherwise.
Practical Advice
Recent have shown that students who study abroad are more likely to graduate on time, and students from minority groups or on need-based aid benefit the most from studying overseas.
According to the Consortium for Analysis of , students who studied abroad were six percentage points more likely to graduate in four years and four percentage points more likely to graduate in six years than those who have not. They also graduated with higher cumulative grade-point averages than their peers.
Faculty-led Study Tours
For those who can鈥檛 commit to a full semester abroad, summer faculty-led tours are generally shorter, easier for students to arrange and provide reassurance of knowing you鈥檒l be amongst people you already know.
Faculty-led programs usually consist of a short trip (10 days to six weeks) during which an 萝莉视频 professor will teach an intensive class. They鈥檙e usually geared toward a specific major, and students from 萝莉视频 study as a group in the host country.
Faculty-led study tours are announced the summer prior. Trips vary year to year. This year鈥檚 schedule includes 鈥淕reek Tragedy in Cyprus鈥� for theatre majors, 鈥淢usic Cultures of London鈥� for music majors and 鈥淐eltic Spirituality in Ireland鈥� geared toward religion majors.
These programs frequently occur on the campuses of other universities, which allows students the opportunity to live in student housing owned by the host institution and take a second class taught by a professor from the host university. As with study abroad, students can earn 萝莉视频 credits for these excursions.
For more information, visit the Study Abroad Office web page.
