Studying abroad was the best decision of my life! It was hands down one of those experiences that I will forever be reminiscing about when I look back at my college years.

I learned so much and grew a lot over the course of 15 weeks and it all began when I learned about the CCI Global Scholars program through the College of Communication and Information. This study abroad opportunity would end up taking me all the way to Sydney, Australia!

Now, never in my wildest dreams did I ever really consider studying abroad in Australia. Whenever I had spoke about studying abroad, I always imagined myself studying in France or somewhere else in Europe.

But, this amazing opportunity seemingly fell into my lap. It was the perfect opportunity for me because not only would it apply to my journalism, but I would be studying, living and even interning in Sydney!

Thanks to Dr. Swan, Dr. Miller and all the individuals at the Study Abroad Office, I was apply to spend my entire Spring 2018 semester Down Under, where I learned so much, not only about communication and journalism, but about myself.

Through Dr. Miller’s Intercultural Communication course, I learned about how to communicate with others across cultural lines. Reading The Culture Map by Erin Meyers for that class really opened up how I looked at communicating with others who were from different cultures and helped me to adjust to my new life in Sydney.

Living abroad also gave me a chance to learn about myself. I had traveled abroad before, but for the first time, I was on my own without family to really be there to support me. I learned how to be more independent, but also the importance of keeping up with family and friends while abroad. So, while I may have been independent before studying abroad, I learned how to truly make it a strength. I learned that it’s okay to be homesick, but not to let that hinder you from being in the moment, because then you might not experience something that could change your life.

Beyond that, I learned to face a lot of fears. Before flying off to Australia, I had made it a goal to not miss out on anything because of things that I feared, like failure and heights. And I didn’t. I stepped onto ledges, I went paragliding, tried new thing that I could have failed at, and it paid off, because I came back with a sense of accomplishment.

I explored and crossed so much off my bucket list: snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, paragliding, climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, going to see Carmen at the Sydney Opera House, holding a koala, petting kangaroos, learning to surf and actually catching a wave, canyoning and so much more.

I was fortunate enough to intern while abroad at AltMedia, a local news organization that published a weekly newspaper. I improved a lot of my skills as a journalist and now have a wider portfolio from the experience.

I was even able to meet family for the first time who lived in Australia.

So, if you have any doubts about studying abroad or don’t know if there is a program that suits you, trust me, there is and you should go for it! It will be one of those experiences that will stay with you forever and you’ll be able to look back at your growth.

Check out this blog to read more about mine and others’ time in Sydney, Australia!