Unity not Uniformity: American Diversity Abroad Panel - January 8th, 6pm, Trotter House

Join us on January 8 at 6:00 pm for a panel on American Diversity Abroad!

Hear your fellow students discuss their experiences abroad. Learn about programs, scholarships, funding, global careers, and the benefits of gaining international experience!

Where: Trotter House, 1443 Washtenaw Avenue

When: Thursday, January 8, 2015

Time: 6:00 PM

Spending the holiday abroad? What are you eating?

Are you having your holiday feast abroad this year? Check out this compilation of holiday dinners eaten around the world! #MGoAbroad

huff.to/1wh7hwF

Wallenberg Summer Travel Awards! Application due Feb. 16

“Little things I was doing might have one effect on one person there, to make them take care of themselves, or make them think about the world around them in a different way. This experience clarified my passion.”

Hea taught health education in hurricane ravaged areas of the Philippines as a Wallenberg Summer Travel Award recipient. What will you do?

Learn and apply: https://mcompass.umich.edu/?go=wallenberg 

Applications due February 16, 2015

LSA International Internship Application DUE TODAY

The LSA International Internship Deadline is TODAY! 

Get those applications in! 

bit.ly/1yyvyv1 #MGoAbroad

LSA International Internships Application Deadline: MONDAY, December 15

Don't forget to get your LSA International Internship Application in by MONDAY, December 15!

Want more information? Read here. 

NOW ACCEPTING: Wallenberg Summer Travel Award applications!

NOW ACCEPTING: Wallenberg Summer Travel Award applications!

“I went in thinking this is just a summer project, but I saw the effect the project had on the participants and their interest in continuing to work together after the summer ended. I realized this summer was just the first step. Now I want to continue here and add programs in Egypt, Lebanon and Palestine. This is something I’d like to continue for the rest of my life.”

Nour created a program to build connections among isolated and vulnerable Syrian refugees in Turkey who have experienced violence and loss as a Wallenberg Summer Travel Award recipient. What will you do?

Learn and apply: bit.ly/1wyqf3I

Applications due February 16, 2015

One Week to Go! LSA International Internship Deadline NEXT MONDAY

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Summer International Internship Program application now open!

Go to the LSA International Internship Website for program info or the M-Compass application to apply. All kinds of internships are available! Last summer Pareesa worked in Istanbul at Koç University, Enxhi went to Albania, and Jack worked in London. If you want to see more stories from last summer go here.

              Applications are due December 15th

 LSA Global Scholarships now open

If you receive need-based financial aid apply for an LSA Global Scholarship to help with the costs of interning abroad. Go here for more information.

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UBELONG Alternative Spring Break

If you are interested in Mexico don't forget about UBELONG Alternative Spring Break in in the Yucatan. Apply through the UBELONG site here.

MPortfolio Presentations! December 12 2:00 PM NQ 2435

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2014

Join us for MPortfolio presentations and hear 13 of your peers talk about their experiences abroad! Light refreshments will be served!

Table Mountain and Cape Town. Samantha Reinders for The New York Times

52 Places to Go in 2014

Witness a city in transformation, glimpse exotic animals, explore the past and enjoy that beach before the crowds

Need something to take your mind off of finals for a few minutes? Check out these must see places of 2014! ‪#‎MGoAbroad‬

Bonderman Fellowship Information Session - TONIGHT!

Picture yourself on an 8-month international trek with $20,000 in your pocket. Picture yourself as a Bonderman Fellow! 

4 LSA seniors will receive $20,000 to travel to at least 6 countries in 2 regions of the world. http://bit.ly/1xTR0LZ 

LEARN MORE about how this could be you at today's info session in the Michigan Union Kuenzel Room from 3–4pm.

#mgoabroad #bonderman

Read about the benefits of Traveling Abroad!

Have you ever wondered about the benefits of traveling abroad? 

Read this article to learn about how traveling the world influenced this high school senior!

http://theatln.tc/1yqQMhX  #MGoAbroad 

Tonight! Join us for an Information Session on Internships in the UK/Ireland!

TONIGHT! Mason 1401 6-7pm

Get all your questions answered about the UK & Ireland Internship program!

Final FLAS Information Session TODAY 4pm 1636 SSWB

TODAY! 

It's you're last chance to attend a FLAS information session for this application cycle! 

4:00 PM

1636 School of Social Work Building

Don't miss out on a great opportunity to get funding for language learning!

Peace Corps Information Session TONIGHT 5PM SNRE Dana Rm 1040

Peace Corps Information Session TONIGHT 12/2

 5:00 pm 

School of Natural Resource and Environment, Dana Rm. 1040

Come hear an amazing group of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers speak about their experiences in Paraguay, Philippines, Madagascar and Ethiopia!

Where will you serve? How far will you go?

Summer in South Asia Fellowship - Information Session! Today, 3:30 PM SSWB

   Photo by Man Kuan Lei, 2014 SISA Alumna 

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TODAY! 

Summer in South Asia Fellowship 

Information Session 

3:30 PM 

Room 1636 School of Social Work Building 

Learn more about how to apply for this independent, funded, and life changing opportunity!

Thanks to a generous donation to the Center for South Asian Studies, undergraduate students at UM have an opportunity to design and carry out their own fellowship programs in India during the summer. This fellowship is intended for non-graduating students who have not already spent significant amounts of time in India. The program is designed to be flexible: you research and choose the NGOs, tell us what you want to study, design a program to accomplish your goals, and we will fund the best and most unique proposals to cover most of your costs. 

For more information contact csas@umich.edu or the International Center's Education Abroad Coordinator, Audrey Buswellabuswell@umich.edu

See you there!

Peace Corps Applications! Due!

Applications DUE TODAY! 

Don't waste one more second! Life is calling. How far will you go?

Summer in South Asia Fellowship - Information Session

Are you up for an adventure in India? Want funding to make it happen?

Apply for the Summer in South Asia Fellowship program!

Learn more at an information session:

Monday, December 1 at 3:30 pm, room 1636 SSWB!

Don't miss out on this incredibly opportunity! ‪#‎mgoabroad‬

Upcoming Program and Funding Deadlines

Spending Thanksgiving Abroad? Read this!

Are you studying abroad and spending Thanksgiving alone? Read about how to handle being away from home during the holidays! 

Now that Thanksgiving is right around the corner, it’s almost time for many Americans to eat pumpkin pie, roast gobblers and spend quality time with their families and friends. But what if you’re studying abroad?

Adjusting to life in a new country on a day-to-day basis is difficult in itself, so it’s understandable for homesickness to rear its ugly head around this time of year. Here are a few tips that should quiet your qualms and help you make the most out of your Thanksgiving away from home.

1. If you can, resist the urge to go home.

Plane tickets are expensive now, and they will be up until after the new year has started. Any attempt at returning to the US for the holidays will cost you a lot of money — maybe even that quick trip to Edinburgh you were planning to take once classes are finished.

Just as there are many resources for international students studying abroad in the US during the holidays, there are certainly resources for American students studying overseas. Ask your institution’s international student services office if they will be offering any kind of celebration for American students. Keep a look out for US embassies, too, that may be hosting American holiday celebrations.

2. Immerse yourself in your new country.

Instead of focusing on where you aren’t, focus on where you are. Place a spin on your holiday homesickness by taking the opportunity to learn more about the country in which you’re living. For example, Guy Fawkes Day (November 5) and the history behind it is a pretty big deal to the Brits. Celebrating holidays that aren’t normally celebrated in the US might just take your mind off of what you’re missing.

3. Limit calls to the family in the days leading up to the holiday.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but trust me – you may not want to hear all about who’s coming to dinner, what weird dessert Grandma has decided to bring this year or anything else that will remind you that you are missing a traditional family event. It will just make you wish you weren’t studying abroad and you were still at home – a feeling that you’ll undoubtedly regret once you realize how much fun it is being abroad in the first place.

4. Talk to your new friends about Thanksgiving.

While speaking with your family members about spending Thanksgiving away from home could make things worse, speaking with your non-American friends could make things a little easier. Not only will it be a cool tidbit of cultural information to share, but it may even give you a fresh, new look on the holiday itself.

You may even realize that while Thanksgiving has its history, it can be incorporated into any new environment. Nowadays, it’s all about eating and good company, anyway! Which leads me to tip number four…

5. Celebrate your Thanksgiving away from home in your new country.

There’s a saying that goes something like, You can’t pick your family, but you can pick your friends. Fewer things are more heartwarming than sitting around a table with a group of wonderful people whose lives just so happened to intersect with yours because you happened to study abroad.

Instead of celebrating Thanksgiving abroad the traditional way, change it up. Roast a chicken instead of a turkey. (In some countries, the former is probably going to be easier to find.) Have your friends bring dishes that they would normally have during their own family holiday celebrations.

Eat everything, take lots of pictures, and — if you’re as hokey as my group of friends was when we had our own makeshift Thanksgiving abroad — go around the table and say what you’re thankful for. You’ll find your list to be a considerably long one.

Wallenberg Fellowship - Apply today!

Graduating senior? Apply for an opportunity to make a difference. 

Apply for the Wallenberg Fellowship. 

2014 Wallenberg Fellow, Lilly Bonadonna is spending the year in Lima, Peru to study and write about the social contexts of tuberculosis that is endemic in neighborhoods of poor urban immigrants.

"Today, Raoul Wallenberg's legacy continues. I along with all of the other students receiving fellowships in his name get to explore that which intrigues us because of him. It is hard for me to express how thankful I am; how lucky I feel to be able to come here, to learn about health and Peru and in turn, myself."

Apply today! http://bit.ly/1taOwWD

Peer Advisor Highlight

Last but not least, we highlight Peer Advisor Aubrey! 

We hope you've enjoyed our International Education Week show of appreciation for our fantastic Peer Advisors! Stop by the Office in the Student Activities Building to meet them in real life!

Aubrey Sitler - Dual Master's student in Social Work and Public Policy

1. How has your international experience influenced your life academically and professionally?

Every time someone asks me this, I think of what I'm pretty sure is an Albert Einstein adaptation of an old adage: "The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know." Global engagement feels like this kind of intellectual, personal, and cultural curiosity to me, and this translates directly into my academic and professional life. My experiences studying, working, and traveling overseas have taught me more about who I am, what drives me, and what I believe to be worth working for than anything else in my life. I can confidently say that without various encounters in Spain, India, and Argentina, I would not currently be pursing graduate degrees in public policy and social work. International experience has become inextricably linked to who I am and what I do.

2. Would you recommend traveling internationally to other U-M students? Explain.

Absolutely. It can teach you so much about what you want out of life and how you fit into a larger global context, if you go into it with an open mind, humility, and a willingness to step out of your comfort zone. The people you meet -- whether in hostel bunk bed above you, on overbooked RyanAir flights, in the community in which you live, or elsewhere -- have the capacity to expand your worldview in specific ways that I have never experienced in a classroom.

3. Tells us about one place you are dying to visit! Why?

Indonesia -- While I was doing a social work field placement in Australia this summer, one of my clients was from Borneo. She talked frequently about how much she missed it, how delicious the food is, how beautiful the islands are, and how much she preferred the culture, language, and lifestyle. All of this inspired me to want to visit. (Plus, let's be honest: Bali sounds and looks like the most incredible/culturally thriving place EVER.)

4. What is your travel motto?

"You do you." You want to spend your summer in Buenos Aires traveling to new places every weekend? Do it. You'd prefer to eat your way through Paris and never leave the confines of the city while you spend a semester there? Fantastic You plan to spend your time in Salamanca memorizing the interior of its every bar and chupiteria? Be safe! (XOXO, -Mom/Dad) But "you do you." Always.

#youdoyou #mgoabroad

Peer Advisor Highlight

International Education Week Peer Advisor Highlight! 

Brenda Duverce -- 1st year Master of Public Policy student

1. How has your international experience influenced your life academically and professionally?

My international experience helped shaped my academic and professional goals. I always had an interest in issues facing people in marginalized communities, and going to Botswana, South Africa, and Morocco reinforced this interest. I had a chance to work with organizations focused on promoting gender equality, preventing new HIV infections, and ending poverty. Those experiences helped shaped my educational goals to pursue a degree in public policy, and a career in making a difference.  

2. Would you recommend traveling internationally to other U-M students? Explain.

Absolutely! Going abroad is a nice way to incorporate what you learn in the class outside of the classroom. You learn to be more patient, flexible, and more creative. Often times you find yourself in situations you never in a lifetime expected to be in or experience, and you laugh, cry, or do both. My fondest memory as an undergraduate student was studying abroad. 

3. Tells us about one place you are dying to visit! Why? 

The one place I am dying to visit is Alaska. I have had the opportunity to travel to many countries, but now it's time for me to explore more places in the U.S.

4. What is your travel motto? 

Travel motto: You only live once (YOLO)! 

LSA Int'l Internship Program UK & Ireland Info Session

Join LSA International Internship Program for an information session:

 Wednesday, December 3 from 6 - 7 pm, room 1401 Mason Hall

Bring Questions and something to write on! 

Peer Advisor Highlight

Continuing our International Education Week celebration, we present:

Kinza Ilyas, Senior, Screen Arts & Cultures

1. How has your international experience influenced your life academically and professionally?

Through traveling abroad I have found my true aspirations; I aspire to document my experiences along with telling the stories of these vibrantly unique cultures of which current media still lacks a true understanding.

2. Would you recommend traveling internationally to other U-M students? Explain.

Absolutely, traveling anywhere is a fun filled adventure  and the challenges the adventure throws at you helps you grow as a person. Traveling helps you find your passions and it tests your strengths. Why wait until you’re old and unable to enjoy things; now is the best time to travel!

3. Tells us about one place you are dying to visit! Why?

New Zealand! To go on an unexpected journey (a.k.a. a Lord of the Rings + The Hobbit style adventure)

4. What is your travel motto?

“It is better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times” -Asian proverb

Peer Adivsor Highlight

Alison Climes, Senior, International Studies & Spanish

1. How has your international experience influenced your life academically and professionally?

My first international experience in college was a volunteer trip to Nicaragua after my freshman year with a group of other U of M students. This positively influenced my decision to go abroad the next summer to intern in Spain, led me to my job as a peer advisor, sparked my interest in public health and Spanish, and even influenced my decision to go to Ghana this past summer. It was a very important part of my freshman year and impacted the rest of my undergraduate career.

2. Would you recommend traveling internationally to other U-M students? Explain.

 

Yes! I think going abroad is one of the best experiences a student can have. By being outside of your comfort zone, you will be able to learn so much about yourself and those around you. It will challenge you and can be difficult at times, but overall I think it is an enriching way to learn outside the classroom. 

3. Tells us about one place you are dying to visit! Why?

Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia... so many places left to explore! Because of my interest in Spanish, I'm eager to travel to spanish-speaking countries and I have yet to set foot on the continent of South America, but it's on the top of my list.

4. What is your travel motto? Example: “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

Travel motto: "The people make the place" -  From my experiences, I have learned that what makes the place you are traveling to special is the people that you meet along the way and/or the people who are there to experience it with you. 

Peer Advisor Highlight

Up next for our Peer Advisor highlight is, Sarah Cunningham!

Sarah Cunningham, Senior, Cell and Molecular Biology and Anthropology

My international experience gave me a new language, a new family, a new perspective, and above all, a new understanding of the world and my place within it. Living in another country provides real-life lessons every single day in communication, organization, cultural awareness, adaptability, persistence, and independence that are invaluable in both an academic and professional setting. International experience also helped me decide what career I was passionate about and wanted to pursue. Everyone should try to travel internationally - as students we have so many opportunities to go abroad (many of which can be funded!), and international experience allows you to apply what you've learned in the classroom to real-world experiences. Traveling abroad also exposes students to so many different cultures, lifestyles, and ways of thinking that challenge what we think we know, and promotes global awareness and thinking on a global scale. The next place I want to visit is Morocco - I've always wanted to learn Arabic, and I think the culture and history of the country is fascinating.

"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart." - Nelson Mandela

Happy International Education Week! #mgoabroad

Peer Advisor Highlight

In honor of International Education Week, the Education Abroad Office will be highlighting our wonderful Peer Advisors! 

Our advisors work hard every day to provide up-to-date information on all things travel, work, and study abroad. They inspire us and many others to get out and see the world on a daily basis! 

Stop by the Office for a visit and learn more about all the opportunities available for you! 
Make your appointment here: http://bit.ly/1HbgyL8

Michelle Gonzalez – 2nd year MPP student 

1. How has your international experience influenced your life academically and professionally?
My international experience reinforced my academic and professional goals. I always had an interest in poverty alleviation. I know that term is very broad but I think my goal was to dedicate my professional career to help in the fight to alleviate poverty. My time in Latin America, both as a student and Peace Corps volunteer, helped me realized that for as much progress as we have made, there is still so much work to be done abroad and here in the United States to combat poverty and inequality. I felt that the place where I could possibly make the most impact was through policy, which is what brought me to Michigan to pursue my Master’s in Public policy. 

2. Would you recommend traveling internationally to other U-M students? Explain.
If you have the chance to travel internationally do it! Traveling internationally helped me in so many ways. I experienced a lot of personal growth. I definitely became more independent. It also opened up my eyes to the fact that there is a HUGE world outside of the U.S. I stepped out of my comfort zone and felt like I had such an amazing and unique experience abroad. 

3. Tells us about one place you are dying to visit! Why?
I’m dying to visit Turkey! Turkey is a country that has such an interesting history and I hear that it’s incredibly beautiful. 

4. What is your travel motto? Example: “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

My travel motto I guess would have to be “expected nothing”. I say that because the times that I've traveled with no expectations (in terms of how I thought I wanted my trip to go, or what I wanted to experience when I went there) I've had the most memorable experiences. A lot of times, we can have really high expectations when we travel. You set an itinerary and you expect things to go according to plan and when it doesn't, you’re disappointed. When you have no expectations you open yourself up to so many new and incredible experiences.