Interview with Featured Study Abroadist ~ Lauren Hall!

Lauren in Prague

Yeah! We have a new featured Student Abroad Interview!  Ladies and gentlemen, meet Lauren Hall, author of the blog “I’m Coming For You, Prague” https://ohivebeentoprague.wordpress.com/.

This lovely young woman has been blessed with the opportunity to give European culture a try, more specifically Prague in the Czech Republic.  You heard that right, the beautiful land of classic and varied architecture, delicious foods, beautiful art, centuries of history, and more.  What a chance!  

Although she’s busy being awesome and having amazing fun times, she was kind enough to agree to an interview about her study abroad experience — why she went, why this program, the country, and more.  Thanks Lauren!

Also, please don’t forget to check out her blog “I’M COMING FOR  YOU, PRAGUE” for more information about her trip abroad!  She’s a great story-teller!

INTERVIEW

Where are you in Your Education? (Sophomore, Junior, Etc.–Highschool/College)

Lauren: “I am going to be a senior in college. “

What have you decided to/are you interested in studying? 


Lauren: “I am majoring in Communication Sciences and Disorders and minoring in Child Development and International Studies. I want to get my masters degree in Speech Pathology and become a Speech-Language Pathologist. I do not know if I want to work with children or older adults yet.”

Why did you decided to study abroad; what sort of things did you consider?


Lauren: “I always wanted to travel Europe and I knew that once I graduated college, got my masters and got a job, doing this would be very difficult. My school has a very good study abroad program and I knew that I would not let myself miss out on this. “

University of Idaho: Al Akhawayn University Summer Direct

University of Idaho:

Al Akhawayn University Summer Direct

Host(s)

• University of Idaho
• Al Akhawayn University

Countries:

• Morocco
  

Kids Studying Abroad Are Now Never Out of Touch

by Beth J. Harpaz via “ABC News”

A generation ago, students on semester abroad were practically incommunicado, aside from airmailed letters and one or two calls home. These days, from the minute the plane lands, kids studying overseas are connected with home via Skype, Facebook, and messaging apps like Viber and WhatsApp.

Has technology altered semester abroad by making it impossible to immerse yourself in another culture? Or does staying in touch simply increase comfort levels, easing both homesickness and parental worries?

Jane Tabachnick of Montclair, New Jersey, remembers airmailing letters to her parents when she studied in Paris for nine months at age 21, long before the cellphone era. “I knew they were worried and that they’d be waiting by the mailbox,” she said. “It seemed like an eternity between letters.”

It was different when Tabachnick’s 21-year-old daughter lived in Russia and Paris as part of her studies at Rutgers University. They often conversed by Skype or GoogleChat. “My daughter is very mature and level-headed and I’m not a big worrier, but I’m a parent, and she’s across the world, and it was just so easy to be in touch,” Tabachnick said.

On the other hand, she said, the less she heard from her daughter the better, and not because she didn’t miss her: “When I hear from her a little less, I know she’s out having fun.”

Robbin Watson was forced to give up screen time with the home crowd when her laptop was damaged during a semester in Italy six years ago, when she was 19.

“I was devastated at first, wondering to myself, ‘How will I know what’s going on at home? How will I Skype my friends?'” she recalled.

But as time went on, her experience in Rome “drastically changed. I began to go out more, no longer running home from class to hop online. I no longer thought about what was going on at college and soon, I began to not even care.”

Looking back, she’s grateful that her laptop was damaged. Her advice for semester abroad: “Get rid of your smartphone. The whole point of studying abroad is to immerse yourself in the culture, the people, the language. Once you have Skype, Facebook and constant calls from parents, I think it really takes away from the experience and becomes a huge distraction.”

Staying in touch is important to Daniele Weiss, 19, a New York University student who spent spring semester in Florence and is now in Israel for the summer. “My mom needs to hear from me every night before I go to sleep,” she said.

From Italy, six hours ahead of her parents, she’d call in the morning before her dad went to work, and then text throughout the day. She said most of her fellow American students also “stayed in contact with everybody from home. It was very comfortable and so easy. It’s not like I felt like I was missing out on the immersion. But I wanted to share things with my mom.” . . . .

READ MORE

Interview with Featured Study Abroadist ~ Genny Parshley!

(c) Moyan Brenn on Flickr
View his website at: http://earthincolors.wordpress.com

Hi everyone!  I’m so excited today because we have a really great post!  

I would like to introduce to you GENNY PARSHLEY, author of the blog “CHEERS” parshley.wordpress.com.

Have to admit, I’m pretty jealous of her right now; Scotland has always been a dream of mine. . . . purple heather,  dashing kilts, ivy-covered castles. . . Sorry, got carried away for a minute!  

Anyway, after reading the amazingly in-depth and inspirational posts she has shared about her trip on her blog, I asked if she would be willing to answer a few questions about her study abroad experience.  Because she is wonderful, awesome, and all things good, she agreed!  Not only that, she offered some really great insight into what goes on with the Study Abroad Process and the motives of those who make the decision to go for it.   So read on and see what you too can learn from her adventures!  

Also, please don’t forget to check out her blog “CHEERS” for more information about her trip abroad!  Definitely worth the read!

INTERVIEW

Where are you in Your Education? (Sophomore, Junior, Etc.–Highschool/College)

Genny: “I am a Junior or Third Year as they call it here!”

What have you decided to/are you interested in studying? 


Genny: “I am studying Public Relations—that’s my major—and Non-Profit Management is my minor! My major interest is studying Non-Profits and subjects related to social justice.”

Why did you decided to study abroad; what sort of things did you consider?


Genny: “I knew that I wanted to study abroad during college from the age of about 12. Traveling the world has always been a dream and a priority for me. I love the idea of going to a place where I know no one, where anything can happen. Though, I should say that that concept terrifies me as equally as it excites me! When considering when and where to study, a few things came to mind. I wanted to study in the spring so I didn’t have to miss my home university’s football season…nothing is better than college football season! Also, I didn’t particularly want to go abroad my senior year because I wanted to be able to spend my last year in the place I have to call home with my best friends. I also had to consider, of course, where I wanted to study but I’ll answer that question in #5 :)”