For students looking to travel the world, meet new people, gain a global perspective and still get school credit, there’s no better way than studying abroad.
That’s exactly what scores of N.C. State students did over the summer, representing the Wolfpack in England, the Czech Republic, Thailand, Peru, Spain, China, Italy and Botswana among other countries.
Within the N.C. State Study Abroad program, there are numerous programs that cater to a range of interests and majors, and no one program is exclusive to a specific major.
England
Bethaney Lewis, a junior in nutrition science, studied abroad in London, England for five weeks.
While there, Lewis camped outside Buckingham Palace along with thousands of Britons to await word on the newborn son of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge.
Lewis also met Daniel Radcliffe, an actor known for his role as the titular character in the Harry Potter movies, outside of a London theatre.
Lewis says she enjoyed the royal baby watch because she and another student got to be on TV around the world. As reporters from Russia, South Africa, Italy and France reported live, they still found time to show their love for N.C. State.
“We went up behind them and pretty much photo bombed, and said ‘Wolfpack!’ and did the Wolfpack sign in their shot while they were broadcasting live, so we were on TV around the world,” Lewis said.
Czech Republic
Alex Sanchez, a senior in communication, traveled to Prague, Czech Republic, where he studied Czech literature and women and gender studies.
Sanchez said the study abroad program made it easy to travel around Prague.
“I would not have been able to go and have the experience I had if I had traveled on my own,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez said he enjoyed sharing his experience with students back home. Sanchez also said he appreciated the fact that he could earn course credit as he experienced the culture, architecture and food of Prague.
Thailand
Brittney Garcia, a senior in international studies, studied in Thailand as part of an ethnographic field school program for five weeks with the University and an additional month on her own.
Garcia said she enjoyed learning about a culture she knew nothing about. She chose to study in Thailand for that very reason.
“Everybody does Europe and things like that, [so] I figured that if it’s going to be with school, I may as well do something different,” said Garcia.
Peru
Tanner Baxley, a junior in biomedical engineering, studied Spanish abroad in Peru for six weeks: two weeks in the Andes mountains and four weeks in Lima with host families.
Baxley said being able to learn about places and historical sites in person was exciting and helped him to improve his Spanish.
“I got to get better at speaking the language, writing the language and communicating with others in Spanish, but also I got to learn about a completely different culture,” Baxley said.
Spain
Christian Faucette, a senior in international studies, went to the Valencia, Spain, were she took two Spanish classes.
Faucette also visited Barcelona and Grenada. She said she did not know much about the country before this summer.
“I was kind of the typical American who knew that they took pride in their bullfighting buts it’s actually not like that there. Bullfighting is actually illegal in Barcelona” Faucette said.
Now Faucette said she is now almost fluent in Spanish and knows specifics about Spanish culture, especially its diverse architecture.
China
John Pujals, a junior in accounting, studied supply chain and operations management and human resources in Shanghai, China, with 30 other business students from the N.C. State business program.
Pujals said he learned a lot about China, and what he learned will help him in the future.
“I think going to another country teaches you to deal with a lot and how to be flexible, and just like in any job, you have to learn how to be flexible and adjust to situations,” Pujals said. “… It was valuable and a lot of fun, too.”
Italy
Shereye Saxena, a junior in electrical and computer engineering, took two business classes in Paderno del Grappa, Italy, as a part of the CIMBA program.
He said he studied abroad because he wanted the opportunity to see another culture.
“I enjoyed being able to travel around and see how different Italy is culturally,” Saxena said.
Botswana
Tracy Anderson, a graduate student working toward a master’s in communications, returned to Gaborone, Botswana, to complete her research for her graduate research project about HIV prevention among adults in Gaborone.
Anderson said what she enjoyed about her trip was the opportunity to interact with local students and inform them about our culture while learning theirs.
“My favorite part has always been interacting with the local people and just see what their lives are like,” said Anderson.