When it comes to studying abroad, it can be difficult to imagine what life in another country might look like, especially when we offer hundreds of programs for you to choose from! Luckily, the Terps who came before you love to share their experiences abroad. See what they have to say:
1. Jasmine Namata, Tanzania
“My greatest experience was climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro.
I'm not normally an outdoors kind of person, but being able to test my own strength and climb the highest peak in Africa was a lifetime experience I will never forget. I was also able to do it with other interns that were on the trip with me, and cheering each other made me feel comfortable and confident through our trek.”
2. Mollie Blum, France
“I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to meet the president of France, Emmanuel Macron.
The best part was that I spoke with him in French! C’était un truc de fou (translation: It was crazy)! Macron happened to be in the same city as me because he was inaugurating a new statue for the 100 year anniversary of the maillot jaune (yellow jersey) in my city. My friends and I went early enough that we were able to get inside, be interviewed by a regional newspaper, and finally, meet Macron.”
3. Meredith McVadon, Argentina
“One of my most memorable experiences was going to a concert alone in Buenos Aires.
Cuco was performing at Niceto Club in Palermo, so I was super excited to see one of my favorite artists for the first time, but I was nervous to navigate the whole thing alone. On my way to the club I saw a girl about my age, dressed in semi-concert attire, so I decided to ask her ¿Vas a el concierto de Cuco? We ended up spending the entire concert dancing and singing together. Most of the recorded music played before the show was in English (Frank Ocean, the Internet) and I even translated some of it for her. Plus, Cuco is Mexican-American, so his show was entirely in Spanish. I loved experiencing a different performance than I would be able to at, say, the Fillmore in Silver Spring. Moral of the story: go to live music performances! Don't be afraid to fly solo!”
4. Michael Hildreth, Spain
“I was fortunate to visit many places during my time abroad.
In particular, one of my favorite trips was to Dublin, Ireland, with my two best friends from home. We all knew each other since 6th grade, and luckily all of us studied in Europe during the Spring semester. So, on the second weekend of February we all left to meet up in Dublin. We flew in midday and arrived at our hostel around early evening. I pre-booked tickets to the Guinness Factory so we headed there and did the tour. Learning about the history of Guinness, how it's made, the person behind it, the famous 9,000 year lease, was such an interesting experience. I'm now officially certified to pour Guinness.”
5. Alexander Pollack, Hong Kong
“On one of my first days in Hong Kong, some exchange students got together to hike up Lion Rock.
We did no research beforehand and only knew that it was supposed to be an easy ~90 minute ascent up stairs to the top. Well, that's not at all what happened. We quickly got lost. Somehow, we ran into a friendly group of locals that showed us to the top. What we expected to be a quick and easy hike took 5-6 hours and had 100+ ft. drops just inches away. I'm not particularly great with heights so yes, there were parts that I couldn't stand but at the same time, it was an incredibly memorable experience. We stayed in touch with that group of locals and ended up going on several more hikes with them!”
Are you ready to experience your own adventures abroad? Explore our study abroad programs and make an appointment with an advisor today to jumpstart your international journey.