Every spring semester many students, mostly juniors, embark to study and live in a foreign country as a part of study abroad. When these students return to Lehigh, they often have a different outlook on school, themselves and life experiences. The Brown and White sat down with Cailee Cassidy, ’16, Griffin Lipson, ’16, and Dana Heller, ’16, to discuss their experiences abroad and how it feels to come back.
How did you choose where you studied abroad?
Cailee Cassidy: I’m kind of a picky eater, which limited my choices a bit, and I love pasta, so that’s a weird reason, but I’m not going to lie, that was part of it. I also had never been to Europe before so I thought Rome would be a central and easy place to travel out of, which it was. I knew a decent amount about the city’s history from taking Latin when I was younger, so I was excited to learn more about it while actually living there — the historical aspect was one of my favorite parts.
Griffin Lipson: For me, it was simple. I went on birthright and fell in love with Israel, so Tel Aviv was the only place I wanted to go. The weather was also a huge plus.
Dana Heller: I chose to study abroad in Rabat, Morocco. I knew I wanted to study abroad in a French-speaking country, but I wanted to go to a country that I knew nothing about so I could learn about an entirely different culture.
Was it difficult adjusting to the country’s culture?
CC: It was at first. I’m a very organized person and I stress when I don’t have a lot to do because I feel like I’m slacking and should be doing more than I am. Italy is the exact opposite of that – if they have a lot of things to do, I’m pretty sure they just drink a bottle of wine and take a nap. It got frustrating when I needed help from the school, but I definitely learned to appreciate their relaxation techniques.
GL: Adjusting to another country’s culture is always difficult at first, but you have to push yourself out of your comfort zone in order to really fully embrace the culture.
DH: It wasn’t difficult all at once, but difficult situations presented themselves often — and when I least expected it. There are several cultural differences because Moroccan life, culture and politics are very influenced by Islam because the country is 99 percent Muslim. These influences were minor things, but still evident. My program had an orientation that made us think we should be scared of Morocco, but I actually felt safer there than I do in my city at home. Most of the culture shock I experienced didn’t come from the large aspects of Moroccan culture, but from the smaller things, such as a sense of togetherness. My abroad group consisted of only 20 American students. We adjusted to the Moroccan culture together and became extremely close since we spent every day learning or traveling together. My favorite times were when we all hung out in our study lounge. This was a place we could go to escape the culture shock of the outside world, to compare our stories, to complain, to learn and adjust.
What has it been like to come back to campus after being away for a semester?
CC: It’s been great. Rome is a big, extremely crowded city and while it was so cool to live there for a semester, I missed the Lehigh bubble and I’m really excited to be back.
DH: I thought coming back to Lehigh would be strange, but it’s great to see all of my best friends and to move into an off-campus house. We all came back to Lehigh and hit the ground running as if we had never left.
What, if anything, do you think has changed on Lehigh’s campus since you last were here?
CC: I’m not sure if this is necessarily true, but I feel like I see people wearing more Lehigh clothing around campus. It might just be because I wasn’t here for four months and when you’re abroad people don’t wear clothes with the name of the school, but that’s something that I’ve noticed these past few weeks – it’s awesome. Shout out to Brown and White Fridays.
DH: My dance team got a lot better and now I’m nervous about keeping up. I also think we’re slowly moving towards a less divided student body.
Would you recommend studying abroad?
CC: One hundred percent. I’ve heard amazing things about the summer programs, too, so if you can’t do a semester because of your major or don’t want to leave Lehigh for that long, I would strongly recommend taking advantage of one of those if possible.
GL: I think if you have the opportunity to study abroad, there is no way you can pass it up – I recommend it entirely.
DH: Absolutely – Lehigh will always be here when you get back.
If you had to give one piece of advice to a Lehigh student beginning the abroad process for the spring semester, what would it be?
CC: Explore all of your options, go with your gut when you’re deciding where to go and wherever you choose, get so excited about it because it’s going to be an incredible experience. Yes, I know that’s three, but can’t you just count it as one because they’re all important.
GL: It may seem scary and uncomfortable, but studying abroad has really positively impacted my life. Get your application in on time and the rest will fall into place.
DH: Do it.
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