Study Abroad Location: University of Westminster; London, United Kingdom – Spring 2008.
Major: I am currently a Secondary Education in Mathematics major, and working on a Business Minor and an International Studies Minor. I studied abroad in the spring of 2008, which was the spring semester of my junior year. When looking at places to study abroad, I wanted to go to a well-known place, where I felt I would fit in. London, to me, seemed like the perfect match. I’ve never actually lived in a big city. I’ve lived in the suburbs of one, but I’ve never had the experience of living in an actual city. So, what better city to study in than one of the best cities in the world?? I also knew that Studying in England (especially London) would give me many opportunities to travel around Europe. If I was given the chance to go back, or was asked if I wanted to go back, I would in an instant! It was absolutely the best time of my life!
As I said, traveling was definitely important to me during my time abroad. Not only did I scout out most of Central London, but I traveled to a bunch of other locations during my time there. Here’s a list of all the places I went:
- Bath, England
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Dublin, Ireland
- Brussels, Belgium
- Paris, France (twice)
- Montpellier, France
- Marseille, France
- Barcelona, Spain
- Milan, Italy
- Florence, Italy
- Rome, Italy (perhaps my favorite place)
- Vienna, Austria
- Crete, Greece
- Cologne, Germany
- Dortmund, Germany
I’ve been a peer advisor for study abroad at Penn State since September 2008. As a peer advisor, I help students start their study abroad search. I supply them with materials, basic study abroad information, and sometimes I’m a website guide. I absolutely love working as a peer advisor. I had the best time of my life, and I want to help other students find a program that can do the same for them!
Studying abroad has definitely changed my life. All I seem to want to do now is travel. In the spring of 2009, I’m traveling to Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan on a Pacific Tour with my choir, Essence of Joy. After I graduate, I plan to travel to either a European country or to China to teach either English or Math. After I teach there for a few years, it’s up in the air. As for now, I just know that I want to travel to different places for a while...
Advice to those looking to study abroad: Time Flies. You’ll meet some of your best friends there, and you’ll be so surprised at how fast you have to leave them. Try not to put things you want to do off till the end because you may miss out on it. If you plan your semester out, you’ll accomplish everything you want to do!