Lauren Frick, a second-year English major from Highland, recently returned from Bilbao, Spain, where she spent five weeks fulfilling a critical piece of her Indiana University Northwest education.
“Choosing to study abroad was one of my best decisions,” Frick said. “The experience really improved my self-confidence. I really put myself out there and did all I could in the short time I was there. My time in Spain will transfer into the classroom and ultimately make me a more engaged student.”
Her experience came with an unexpected additional feature: IU Northwest’s Chancellor William J. Lowe stopped by her Spanish classroom after visiting with the director of University Studies Abroad Consortium (USAC). He later accompanied Frick and her USAC group of 40 classmates on a bus trip to Saint-Jean-de-Luz, a seaside town in the French Basque Country, and the Spanish Basque town of San Sebastian.
“I wanted to see what the students experience,” Lowe said. “It was splendid weather for a visit to the Basque coast and I enjoyed meeting students from around the United States and hearing about their experiences during what was, for many of them, the first time in another country.”
While the trip to Bilbao originated with IU Northwest’s modern languages program, with more than 60 IU Northwest students traveling there over the past 12 years, it is only one of more than 300 opportunities in more than 50 countries available through IU’s Overseas Study Program.
Transformative learning
As a young man just beginning college at Michigan State University (MSU) 50 years ago, Lowe remembers the importance his alma mater placed on studying abroad.
“After my second year, I went to Ireland for the summer of 1970,” Lowe said. “It was a very important experience for me, both as a young man and academically.”
Lowe’s first visit to Ireland included a meeting with a prominent historian at Trinity College Dublin, where he later returned to complete his Ph.D. in modern history. That experience created other opportunities that helped to shape his career, as both a historian and a senior academic leader.
Financially feasible
Frick was this year’s recipient of the William J. and Pamela A. Lowe Study Abroad Scholarship. She also qualified for a matching scholarship granted from IU Bloomington.
Eva Mendieta, chair of the Department of Modern Languages, said that, unfortunately, many students pass up the opportunity to study abroad or dismiss it because they assume it is not affordable.
“Most students don’t realize how committed the university is to helping students achieve their goal of studying abroad, an experience so valuable that many colleges now require it,” Mendieta said. “There are many scholarships available to students to defray the cost, not only from IU but from many outside organizations.”
Mendieta advised that students who might be considering studying abroad next summer should begin exploring scholarship opportunities a year in advance. Some scholarships have a December application deadline.
“Studying abroad is an experience like no other that you can receive while in college,” Mendieta said. “Students return home with a greater understanding of the world’s people, cultures, and values. Sometimes, stepping away from the structures we immerse ourselves in is the best way to acknowledge and understand them.”
Experiences beyond the classroom
Alaina Polen, also an English major from Highland, learned the truth of this statement firsthand, after spending three weeks in Bilbao this summer. One of her biggest goals was to work on her Spanish-speaking skills.
“Being put on the spot in restaurants and grocery stores strengthened my Spanish a lot, not only because I had to figure out what I was going to say to get what I needed, but also because I had to understand the response,” she said. “It also helped that the class size was small. The other students were also learning the language, so I had people I could practice conversational Spanish with in a more relaxed setting.”
Veronica Wing, of Dyer, studied psychology and German in Vienna for six weeks.
“This was an experience of a lifetime,” she said. “Because of scholarships and the support of the faculty, I was able to experience a new culture. Studying abroad is an amazing opportunity that I would encourage all students to take advantage of.”