With this being the Year of International Engagement, it seems a particularly compelling time to consider spending time abroad. For Mount Allison students, international opportunities abound.

This Monday, several students looking for various opportunities to study and adventure in a new country went to the Study-Abroad and Exchange Fair.

The event began with an overview of all the exchange programs and finished with a SACtivities-like fair where students who had been on exchanges had tables and displays set up to advertise their programs.

Adam Christie, Manager of International Affairs, said that the event is designed to “make students aware of what study-abroad options are available to them, to get them thinking about whether they would like to factor one of these programs into their time at Mount Allison, and to put them in touch with people who can give them on-the-ground reports of what it’s like to be there and to give them the information they need about what’s required to get there.”

Christie said that an experience abroad can have a tremendous effect on peoples' studies and their lives. Academically, he said that “these international experiences really serve to strengthen your degree and to bring a very different perspective to what you’re studying.”

Students are also encouraged to look into work and volunteer opportunities if they would rather stay at Mt. A for their academics.

Christie excitedly explained that Jean-Marc Hachey, author of “The Big Guide to Working and Living Overseas” will be on campus on October 14. In addition, the International Centre has purchased an online version of the book, which is totally interactive. If students are interested in working, living, or volunteering overseas, they’ll be able access the site and create an account free of charge to seek out information on how to get overseas.

As the Manager of the International Centre, it's no surprise that Christie is excited about international opportunities.
“I think at the end of it, that you come out of it, first off with a very different perspective on the world, and […] as a much stronger individual and perhaps more sure of who you are.”

But it is not just Christie’s opinion. Every former exchange student interviewed at the Fair seemed to agree. When asked whether they would recommend their exchanges to other students, they all responded, without fail, with one word – definitely.










Questions:
1. What moment was the most fun during your time abroad?
2. What was the most challenging element of your exchange?
3. What valuable skills or knowledge did you gain from being abroad?
4. Did you have ideas about the place you lived before going that were either confirmed or rejected by living there?

Sue Humphrey – Killam Fellowship
1. Being there for the American election was amazing since Smith is an incredibly liberal campus and voted 98% Democrat. Seeing young women that excited about politics and the change for and future of their nation was inspiring.
2/3. It was challenging in three respects. First, going to a place knowing no one and needing to adapt in one semester was challenging but enlightening. Second, I don’t think I’ve ever been as challenged academically, which was hard but rewarding. And third, it really is a program between Canadians and Americans, which allows for the development of mutual understanding.
4. It was interesting because I was in a liberal pocket of the U.S. which made me hopeful for the country and was different from the typical American stereotype.

Catherine Burrows – Mid-Sweden University
1. Being in Europe there’s a lot of chance to travel. We got to go to the arctic circle and go dog sledding, as well as travel around the other Scandanavian countries.
2. The language. Swedes are good English speakers, but it got lonely at times with Swedish signage and Swedish being spoken all around you.
3. You have to interact with people from all different types of cultures so you learn to interact differently. It’s hard to explain, but it’s helped me with self-confidence.
4. I expected and found that Swedes are polite and nice, but they were also more reserved than I had imagined.

Lauren Ledwell – Norway
1. All of the exchange students from around the world that I met.
2. Budgeting was hard since Norway’s a very expensive country.
3. Concerning my program, I gained a better sense of the international business society and culture.
4. Learning to live in a new culture that’s far away from home.
5. I had heard that Norwegians are reserved and that they drink a lot, which was definitely confirmed.

Ally Kelly – Belize Archaeological Field School
1. There were too many fun parts. Walking through the jungle every day was incredible. We were stationed at an isolated research station, and hanging out with the rangers who work there was amazing. We also got to see a lot of established archeological sites which are mind-blowing.
2. The heat. It was 40 degrees every day and we were in long sleeves, long pants, and hiking boots. And the bugs were bad too… we had to check for scorpions and tarantulas every night before bed.
3. I came back to Canada with a great appreciation not just for Mayan, but all ancient cultures. I also got to experience the modern culture of Belize too.

I can’t think of a better way to get 9 credits than hanging out in the jungle.

Noah Kawalski – Shasti Summer Program
1. Running away from wild elephants. We were doing a morning hike up to a tea plantation which was four hours up and four hours down. Our guides had gone ahead and then we saw them come running telling us to run. It was quite the experience.
2. Living, working, and eating submersed in India was fairly intense. Wherever we went people wanted to talk to us and know where we were from, which could be hard.
3. As an IR student it was interesting to see the development programs run by the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement. Also, you really get a hands-on approach to learning. For example, we were taught by Sanscrit scholars and Brahmin priests.
4. Yes and no. I thought it would be more packed population-wise, but it was less of that than I had thought it would be. There were actually a lot of beautiful open spaces.

Evan Kleber – France
1. Getting in contact with a French family and tutouring English to two French boys. It was almost like having a French family away from home.
2. The French bureaucratic system was difficult to follow. Getting a visa was a tough process, but I got it in the end and it was good to learn to maneuver through the system.
3. I definitely gained language and communication skills. But I learned more than that. I learned the culture and how Europe functions. There were things I wouldn’t learn in a classroom that I learned through daily life in Strasbourg.
4. I didn’t have a lot of expectations. I’d heard the classic stereotypes and some of those were confirmed, like the fashion and style, but many things were brand-new and eye-opening, like the incredible architecture.

A-Robyn Rotchford, B- Sammy Ellaia - KJU Japan
1a. Karaoke was a lot of fun. It’s really popular there and done very differently. You go into small booths with friends and don’t have to sing in front of a bunch of people you don’t know.
1b. The other exchange students were amazing. We face the same challenges so we became very close.
2a. It was a long time to be away from home and using a language other than English.
2b. When we first arrived we couldn’t speak with anyone.
3a. There were so many ways that I changed. I became more confident and able to express myself because I spent a year trying to do so in Japanese. I’m now more able to accomplish leadership tasks.
3b. You learn communication isn’t only about words. I’m more sensitive to how people feel because I’ve learned what it’s like to not be understood.
4a. For some reason I thought TV would be all anime and drama, but it’s mostly comedy and talk shows.
4b. I thought a lot more people would speak English in Japan, but very few people do.

Sarah Irving – North American Mobility Program
Sarah went to the University of Yucatan (in Mérida)
1. A highlight was going to Chichén-Hzà during the Spring Equinox, which was like a religious experience. I also got to look at a lot of major Mayan archeological sites and see underground rivers and lakes which were sacred places of ritual for the Maya. Other than these things, the most meaningful parts was that despite any problems, the Mexican friends I made were willing to help me and talk to me about anything. People were overwhelmingly friendly.
2. My biggest problem was the bugs, especially the cockroaches, which are monstrous.
3. So many things. It definitely affected my painting, which is my minor at Mt. A. My friends say that they can ‘see Mexico’ in my work.
The obvious one is that I can speak Spanish now and can say some awesome Mayan slang words. Spanish in a classroom is just a framework of how to learn a language, but being there you learn the feeling and meaning of things that you can only express in Spanish. You learn that culture and language and tradition are a big bundle of things that can’t be separated.
4. I don’t think I had a big idea of Mexico. I had an idea that it’s a developing nation, that they have a certain food or a certain dress. But when I got there I realized that Yucatan is highly regionalized. The food and dress is different and the language is different too because it’s Mayan-influenced.

Stephen Middleton – Otago University

1. Probably the opportunity to get out and see the New Zealand countryside. To be out camping and hiking in the primeval wilderness of New Zealand. And the chance to get to know local New Zealanders in the process.
2. The challenge was being on my own in terms of settling in and getting set up. Otago is a big university, so coming from a place as small as Mount Allison, there was definitely difficulty in transitioning.
3. In addition to gaining insight into a different culture, I was able to gain self-reliance and confidence. Academically speaking, the University of Otago is able to offer an amazing array of programs and I was very lucky that, given my background at Mount Allison, I was able to take advantage of some of those programs.
4. Not really. But New Zealand is an amazing country, and for students that are interested in getting outside for camping, hiking, and exploring, New Zealand is a singularly amazing place to get out and do that.