Ben Kaufman
Presentation Director
We have reached that dreaded point in the semester where everything is winding down and finals are coming soon, meaning that everyone is officially freaking out about the large amount of finals, projects and papers that we all have. While most people are only focused on all of that, I, along with some other students, have to also take into account everything that I need to do before going abroad next semester.
On top of all the normal issues we have when finishing up the semester, we have to complete all of the work that is required before going abroad. We have to get forms signed, classes approved, figure out everything we are doing with the university we will be staying at (housing, tuition, etc.) and many other tasks. On top of all this, we have to pack up our rooms as if it is summer and then pack up everything we need for our foreign destination. This all leads to the questions of whether to buy bedding here or once we land, how to bring toiletries on a plane and all those headaches that traveling brings. This includes making sure your passport isn’t expired and packing up everything as if headed back to campus, but instead, flying to a different country. As a native New Yorker, I’ve never had to fly to school, so this will be a new experience for me.
That being said, I am incredibly excited to go abroad. This will be my first time going to Europe, so I’m excited to start living a life like the ones I’ve heard about in stories. I am going to be studying at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and, according to Arcadia University (the school that is running my program), I am the only student at this university going to Scotland. Just like it was starting college three years ago, it’ll be a cool experience to have to meet new people while exploring not only Scotland, but hopefully most of Europe as well. The Office of International Education made the process really easy for me. Once I figured out which program I wanted, my advisor made it very clear what I needed to do in order to go abroad. This included the people I needed to talk to, when I needed my application in and everything in between.
Although I am very excited, it will be sad to miss out on a semester in Lewisburg. As much as I often criticize Lewisburg for being isolated in the middle of nowhere, there is a strong sense of community here that I am going to miss, especially since I have become so used to everything the University has to offer, including the interesting courses and easy accessibility to professors if I need help. However, I have only really left the country once, so I am way overdue for an experience in a foreign country. Even though I haven’t actually gone abroad yet, I would say to take advantage of the opportunity to do so if you get the chance. My brother went abroad for a year in Hawaii and then in Rome, and he said it changed his life and made him more culturally aware. On top of that, I have not heard one person say that he/she regrets going abroad. As much as we love the comfort we have in the ’burg, sometimes it’s necessary to get away for a semester and try a new experience.