My Experience in Spain

Despite being delayed three days by the blizzard-like conditions after Christmas, I traveled to Spain over winter break to participate in the Lehigh in Spain program. Because of the snow, I missed most of the allotted time in Madrid. The majority of my trip was spent in Seville. In between our scheduled class times, we saw churches, royal palaces, museums, Roman ruins and even a soccer game! The Cathedral of Seville was one of the most aesthetically beautiful churches I have ever seen. There is also a bell tower that we climbed to view the city from above. While I loved doing these touristy things, I had just as much fun doing everyday things. Observing people while I walked the streets and having a leisurely long lunch before a siesta were favorite activities of mine.

Everyone on our program lived in a home stay during our time in Seville. Even though I had not spoken Spanish in two years, I instantly remembered everything when I was thrust into a living situation with a woman who spoke no English. It was so rewarding to realize that I could communicate what I needed and understand what was being said to me. The home stay was such an eye-opening experience because it really helped me appreciate the culture of Spain.

La Giralda: the church bell tower

The Cathedral of Seville

Study Abroad Celebrity Back Home

Today I handed in my six page reflection paper from my Spain study abroad trip. Over the course of two weeks, our group of 18 students attended class four times. During class we gave presentations on various aspects of Spanish history and culture that we had researched prior to traveling. Upon return to the United States, we all wrote papers to earn our three credits.

When I went to visit my professor from the trip and turn in my paper, she showed me that our group was featured on the front page of Lehigh’s school newspaper, The Brown and White.

It is so nice to look at the picture and recount the fun times we had. I ran into three boys from the program today, and we all bonded over how much we missed Spain. Having traveled with my school, my experience was unique in that I made friends abroad that I can continue to see at school. While it is not the traditional experience, it was still an amazing opportunity that I will always have fond memories of.

Many of my friends commented about seeing me in the paper today. So many of them were juniors who, like me, do not have the time to study abroad for a full semester. They were all jealous of my experience and expressed desires to travel through a similar program. As juniors many of us regret not making study abroad a priority. Underclassmen: Take advantage of the fact that you don’t need to know your major, but make sure that you keep study abroad on your horizon!

Internships Abroad

The beginning of the semester is always stressful. I am facing numerous changes and responsibilities. Just after getting used to living at home again, I have been uprooted and placed back in the college scene. In addition to adjusting to new classes and new professors, I am trying to find time to balance homework, social commitments and extracurricular activities. On top of all that, it is crunch time for finding a summer internship!

Last summer I had an unpaid internship editing patient-friendly medical journal articles. The experience was so rewarding because it really helped improve my writing and editing skills. Since my career path is not yet solidified in my mind, I have an idea for something different this summer. I want to intern at a pharmaceutical or biotechnology firm. For me, geographic location of the internship is important because I am hoping it will give me a foot in the door at a company in this scarce job market.

For those of you simply looking for an internship to increase skills and add to your resume, why not consider an internship abroad? This is a great opportunity for students who cannot study abroad for a full semester during the school year for financial reasons, major requirements or athletic obligations. This type of study abroad allows you the opportunity to gain real-world experience in both the work force and the self-enrichment department. While applying what you’ve learned in school and boosting your marketable skills, weekends are free for sightseeing!

Decisions, Decisions, and More Decisions

More Obama news to share! College students wishing to study abroad and church groups may soon be able to travel to Cuba to participate in new programs. Under President Clinton’s administration these conditions also existed, but in 2004 President Bush tightened restrictions, limiting travel to Cuba.

As a result of the president’s announcement to ease travel restrictions for study abroad, many universities are preparing to implement programs to study Spanish and possibly global health in Cuba.

This is a great opportunity for students to see another country in the world. The only problem: It further complicates the decision about where to study abroad by adding another possibility! Choosing the place to study abroad is just one decision students are faced with when they decide to study abroad. Other things to consider include whether to go abroad for a full semester or for a shorter time such as a summer or winter program like the one I participated in. If you decide to go for a semester, the next choice is whether to go in the fall or spring semester. For Lehigh students, is it possible to miss the Lehigh-Laf game?!

These may seem like trivial questions to ask yourself, but going abroad is a big decision. It’s almost like being a freshman all over again. No friends. Unfamiliar environment. Living (further) away from family. Scary! To make things even scarier, this time you may have to cope with a language barrier.

The unknown is always feared in any situation. Although these scary conditions associated with study abroad exist, they should not be reasons to stay home. Instead of thinking about the scary, think of the exciting. The prospects of making new friends, learning new cultures and traditions, and being independent are all aspects of study abroad that should outweigh fears.

Michelle Obama Encourages Students to Study Abroad

Today at Howard University, First Lady Michelle Obama encouraged students to study abroad in China. She said, “Studying in countries like China isn't only about your prospects in the global marketplace. It's not just about whether you can compete with your peers in other countries to make America stronger. It's also about whether you can come together and work together with them to make our world stronger. It’s about the friendships you make, the bonds of trust you establish and the image of America that you project to the rest of the world."

President Obama introduced the “100,000 Strong Initiative” in 2009. This program seeks to increase the number of students who travel to China and help underrepresented groups such as minorities and community college and high school students study abroad. Michelle Obama also announced today more than $2.25 million in private sector pledges has been committed to support the initiative’s goals.

The president and first lady are clearly passionate about involving students in worldly interactions. Many times at Lehigh I feel like I am in a bubble. Unless I seek out news or information, I never hear about world or local news. By encouraging study abroad, the Obamas are promoting interest in foreign affairs. Interest leads to knowledge, which can lead to understanding and working together. Michelle Obama’s view on study abroad transforms the idea from a shallow desire to travel to a sophisticated social experiment involving collaboration of people from all over the world.

I personally believe that a “hands on” approach is the most effective way to learn. Study abroad offers the possibility to learn about the history and local happenings of a foreign country, about social and cultural differences among populations, and about yourself all in an interactive environment.

For full coverage of Michelle Obama's speech: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2011/01/at-howard-u-michelle-obama-urg.html

Glad to be Home; Sad to be Home

Hi all! My name is Christine, and I am a junior at Lehigh University. Over winter break I took a three credit winter session class in Seville, Spain. I loved every second of it! Between classes I got to explore cathedrals and royal palaces, shop in the streets, indulge in churros with hot chocolate and attend a soccer game. My program lasted for only two weeks because it was between semesters, and it made me really jealous of students who have the opportunity to study abroad for a full semester.

I sometimes think I have the “travel bug” – my dad’s worst nightmare! With so many places in the world, I want to see them all and absorb the different cultures. Lehigh’s Study Abroad Office offers more than 200 programs in about 60 countries! Unfortunately for me I have too much going on at school to devote an entire semester to learning and fun abroad.

I came into college undecided about my major and career possibilities. After sophomore year I started to gain insight into my interests and future aspirations. I have always loved to learn, which led me to pick a wide range of majors and minors. I am a Journalism and Science Writing major with a Business minor, a Biology minor and a Health, Medicine and Society minor. So the prospect of leaving Lehigh for a semester and still graduating in four years is completely out.

I guess that is my first piece of advice: Upon entering college, solidify your desires to go abroad. Picking the destination is not as important as factoring in the time during these four short years of college.