Emily Yeh (Japan, 2017-18)

My interest in environmental policy and sustainable development was developed during my time at the University of California. However, since the U.S. often falls short on adopting appropriate environmental policies, Japan has always been my regional interest. It is also an exceptional timing to study in Japan, as Tokyo is promoting a lot of new ideas relating to sustainable development for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games. Through living in Japan and learning the Japanese language, I have become more determined in pursuing a career in sustainable development and environmental policy.

At Keio University, I was fortunate to enroll in the Japanese Language Program (JLP) that offered comprehensive and subject-specific Japanese language courses. My Japanese language skills improved immensely, and I am now capable of having long conversations in Japanese. Being able to do so also led me to new perspectives on Japan’s environmental policy, culture, and society since I can now speak with Japanese people directly and do not have to rely on secondary sources in English. This gave me a chance to restore my curiosity for various things in life. Since I now get to see a world that I was not able to see due to the language barrier, I now have access to so much more new information.

While I no longer plan on pursuing a PhD in political science, my research and career interest in environmental policy and sustainable development remain the same. I believe that I can contribute more as a non-academic given my communication skills and the ability to work with people from different fields. I became even more certain of this as I pick up the Japanese language. My international background has exposed me to different cultures, and I have come to notice that experiences like this require years of cultivation. People who speak British English and American English sometimes do not understand each other. There are cultural and regional barriers beyond the language barrier. While people can still communicate as long as they speak the same language, the ability to carry the conversation smoothly should not be undermined, especially when it comes the ease of collaboration. I truly believe that people with an international background and are multilingual will be the key to solving many global issues in the years to come.

One of my goals of this study abroad program was to integrate into the Japanese society. My past study abroad programs have always felt more temporary. Being one semester each, there were many things that I could wait until I get back to the U.S. However, this time, I lived more like a local. Language barrier remained as the biggest challenge; but being able to overcome that barrier was also the most rewarding. Looking back, it is interesting to notice that I have come a long way—from barely being able to speak on the phone to being able to confidently explain my situation in various cases. The process and progress are truly rewarding. As a foreigner, I have come to realize that never understanding 100% of what is being said is inevitable. In addition, finding alternative ways to express myself with the Japanese I know is the ultimate key to becoming integrated in Japan. I am grateful to say that I achieved my goals of this study abroad program.

Moving forward, although I have finished my UCSD degree this spring, the host institution, Keio University has offered me to keep studying in its Japanese Language Program this fall. I will also be seeking job opportunities in Tokyo.

Mikayla Webster (Japan 2016-17)

During my time abroad, I have learned more and in new ways about the world, studying, socializing, and myself than I could have even comprehended prior to my stay in Japan. Here I will attempt to briefly summarize the vast wealth of knowledge and insight I have gained over the past year, but in all honesty I do not think there are enough pieces of paper in the world to contain it all.

I will begin with Japan itself. Aside from a bit of history knowledge, sushi, and ninjas, I had very little exposure to Japanese culture before coming to Japan. One of the reasons I picked Japan is because of how different its upbringing is to America’s. I expected myself to be culturally shocked upon arrival, but could not truly anticipate how challenging culture and language barriers are.

English and Japanese share no language roots, therefore I had no basis for understanding the language upon arrival. As I studied the language, new challenges set in as I started to understand local culture through the language. While English has many temporal tenses, Japanese has only past and non-past. Rather, their infinite verb conjugations reflect social hierarchy. It enforces a distinction based on age and status that is inescapable. Over time the oppressive expectation that you must fulfill your societal role in Japan became harder and harder to swallow. As a foreigner, it felt especially tangible. No matter how well I tried to fit my role I still would never fit in. Honestly, I never truly came to terms with the language and culture clash.

However, this collective mentality also facilitates an air of kindness and willingness to self-sacrifice for the good of others the likes of which does not exist in America. Everyone is expected to treat those in need with extreme hospitality. It is expected, therefore many Japanese people comply. Before coming to Japan I was a vegetarian. When eating out with friends, I would request a place that had even a single vegetarian option. Unfortunately Sendai does not facilitate eating meatless. My Japanese friends would spend unreasonable amounts of time and effort attempting to find me a vegetarian dish. Where an American would have claimed it too difficult, my Japanese friends wanted nothing more than to help me through to completion. I gave up being a vegetarian before they gave up attempting to find me meatless cuisine. (Even today, though I have not been a vegetarian for months, they are still trying to help me find that vegetarian dish.) I want nothing more than to be able to bring this level of self-sacrifice back with me to America.

Next, I will address my extracurricular life. While I had many grand goals before going abroad such as becoming fluent in Japanese or writing a thesis-style paper based off of my lab work, my most realistic goal was just to survive and thrive. Unfortunately in terms of thriving, I have some remorse. My biggest regret while being in Japan was that I did not stay committed to a particular club or circle while here. I participated in many one-time events, attended some language exchange club meetings, and some badminton club meetings. Personal interaction with Japanese students is difficult, and it is through these clubs that you get to know locals. While I did make one very good Japanese friend while here, I made a bad habit of staying in my “English bubble” for a majority of my time here. Had I interacted with the local community more through clubs and organizations, I would have better language skills and understanding of local culture.

However, within my “English bubble” I made lifelong international friends. I find it somewhat ironic that while studying abroad in Japan, I was able to learn about countries such as Germany, Sweden, Spain, France, Venezuela, Indonesia, Taiwan, and more. In addition to my Japanese studies, I began to study German. Study of the German language coupled with advice from some of my dearest friends here have inspired me to pursue a Master’s degree abroad in Germany. I know that I will thrive pursuing a Master’s degree in Munich (I hope to attend the Technical University of Munich) because I have learned from the mistakes I made while trying to survive in Sendai. Had I not come to Japan, I would not have such optimistic and worldly plans for my Master’s education.

Next, my student life. At Tohoku University I spend one half of my time in classes and the other half in a laboratory. While there were some bumps in the road adjusting to a new system of learning, overall I am extremely appreciative of the myriad of hands-on learning experiences I had, especially in my laboratory. I was given “free reign” in my lab to use all of the equipment that I could not dream of touching in America. In my lab I learned Matlab programming. I learned to solder. I was able to use their anechoic room and run experiments unsupervised (after proper equipment-use training). I gained skills in Japan that I could not have gained in America, and at a faster pace because the pedagogic methods were so interactive.

Unfortunately I found my science classes to be much less engaging. At the University of California-San Diego, our classes meet three to four times a week, have weekly programming assignments, and at least two rigorous tests per quarter (often much more). If the teacher has to miss a class, they bring in a substitute. Our education is taken extremely seriously and much is expected of us. In our special international student classes, they do not hold us to very high standards. Classes only meet once a week, and are often cancelled. Homework assignments only occur twice or three times a semester. Sometimes there are no exams. I feel that without these pedagogic tools I was not able to learn as well in the classroom as I would have if I were in San Diego. My time in Japan made me extremely appreciative of the quality education I receive at UCSD. However, the extra free-time I had because my classes were so easy did allow me to explore Sendai, Japan, and other countries.

Lastly, I will address what I have cherished most while in Japan: my travels. I visited Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Vietnam, in addition to making many trips locally. I made a point to study a bit of the history, language, and culture of every place I went to. During my travels I underwent a bit of a transformation. I was extremely scared while first travelling: I tended to distrust everyone and kept to myself while entering a new situation. While travelling alone I met many locals and other travels who helped me realize something I always knew but never quite understood: Everyone, like me, is just human.

My time in Japan has motivated me to extend Japanese-style, self-sacrificial kindness to those with whom I empathize. My travels through South East Asia taught me empathy towards all humans - family, friends, acquaintances, and strangers. While my motivations for coming to Japan were focused on the advancement of my computer science education, in the end everything I do is by and for the people of this earth. What my time abroad has taught me is that I need to do right by every single one of them.

Sophia Osborne (Japan 2016-17)

Growing up, I knew from a young age that I would study abroad for a year in college. Both my parents did their junior year abroad, and it was basically expected of my siblings and I that we would go abroad. I also knew going into this experience what people usually learn from living in a new country during college; you learn more about yourself, you learn how to communicate in a different culture, you learn more about the language of the country, that sort of stuff, so I was expecting these kinds of personal changes from my year abroad. However, besides those aspects there are also a lot of other unexpected ways in which I think I’ve grown during this year because of the opportunity to come to Tokyo.

Compared to my parents’ study abroad experiences, my coming to Japan was a bit different in that I’ve grown up in Japan and I’ve been connected to the culture before coming here. This has colored my experience in a few ways that I hadn’t anticipated. For example, while some of my other exchange student friends have been exploring Tokyo for the first time in their lives, I’ve been re-exploring the city of my childhood, and re-familiarizing myself with things that used to come as second nature to my six-year-old self. One vivid memory I have from this year was on a very mundane stroll around the Yoyogi area of Tokyo with a Japanese friend, when suddenly we turned down a path to walk past a shrine, and the road stretching out of the shrine lined with summer food stalls overlooking a lily-covered pond jolted me violently back into a memory from my childhood when I was around five or six years old, and that memory was so incredibly powerful it felt like a jump cut transition from a movie transporting me back to the past. I inexplicably started crying, to my poor friend’s utter confusion.

In addition to re-connecting with my past through living in Tokyo, my language study has also been an important area of personal growth. I knew coming into this year that my Japanese would get better through studying, making friends and interacting with my environment, but I hadn’t realized how far that would take me. Over one of my school breaks, I had the chance to visit family friends from when we lived in Tokyo. Two years ago my sister and I had visited this family in Sapporo, Hokkaido when my Japanese was very minimal, and we had to translate through their daughter to communicate with the rest of the family. However this time when I visited, I could speak with all of the family members, including their grandparents who spoke with a rural Hokkaido accent. It meant so much to me that I’m now able to express all of my gratitude to them properly for taking care of me while I visited.

While there are many things that are familiar and comfortable about Japan for me, coming to the country again as an adult has made me realize things that I had no consciousness of as a child growing up in Japan, specifically how I stand out as a foreigner. In California, at least where I grew up, it’s hard to stand out as a foreigner from your surface appearance. But in Japan the “gaikokujin” (foreigner) effect is very obvious when I ride the public transportation or walk into a store, or especially when I go to my local public bath to enjoy a nice soak with my neighbors. Sometimes when I’ve gone out to eat with a Japanese friend, the store staff will address my friend instead of me when I order because they assume I don’t speak Japanese. I think for most people this wouldn’t bother them, but for me it’s been a bit frustrating, especially when I feel like I understand Japan well and I can communicate with ease. Occasionally however I’ve learned to revel in the “outsiderness” of being a foreigner in a so-called homogenous country by talking loudly with foreign friends in the streets (receiving long looks from Japanese passerby), and that is definitely something I would have never had the chance to experience in the U.S., where I rarely feel like I’m in the minority.

Beyond my cultural experiences in Japan however, I’ve also had the chance to grow more professionally and learn more about the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. I came into this year expecting to pursue my interest in East Asian historical issues more thoroughly through academic research, but I’ve had so many other opportunities to learn about other fields and future career options that I’ve ended up pursuing a different field altogether. Through my academic program at Waseda University, I was able to secure an internship with the Japanese think tank the Japan Forum on International Relations this semester. Not only have I been able to observe and experience Japanese office culture from my weekly internship, but I’ve also learned a lot more about Asian international relations in areas I had little knowledge of, such as economics through my projects with JFIR.

Additionally, throughout this year I’ve been a part of several academic extracurricular programs that have opened my eyes to what I’m capable of doing, and one of the most influential has been the Korea-America Student Conference (KASC). Last summer I participated in the conference as a delegate in South Korea before I left for Japan, and then after the conference I was elected to become one of the student Executive Committee members to lead this year’s conference in the US. Since September I’ve been working with a team of four American and four Korean college students to plan this summer’s three-week long conference. I’ve learned so much about professional networking, leadership, and some of the inner workings of the International Relations scene in Washington DC through my participation in KASC. In December we held a Trilateral Symposium with our sister program, the Japan-America Student Conference (JASC) where we students had the opportunity to speak with policy analysts and government officials on public panels relating to Japan-Korea-US issues. This was a dream come true for me, combining my interests in South Korea and Japan, and the chance to see my Korean friends meet and bond with my new Japanese friends was really inspiring.

Along with my year-long work for KASC this school year, during my spring vacation I also got the chance to take part in another student exchange type of academic program, but this time to Southeast Asia. With a program called Learning Across Borders, I traveled to Thailand and Malaysia with a group of Japanese and Burmese university students. While learning about the region’s culture and people, we also visited and spoke to many NGO’s and UN organizations to learn more about what they do. We spoke to UNHCR in Malaysia, Human Rights Watch in Thailand, and a variety of smaller, local non-profits as well. This program was incredibly eye-opening to me, as I had known nothing of the region prior to this program. I also learned a lot about non-profit work and international development work, and that has greatly influenced my thoughts on my career after graduation. I’m now planning to pursue a career in international NGO work, specifically in Asia and development.

The many deep friendships and connections I’ve made while in Japan with people from all over the world has both made my world smaller, and also so much larger. There is so much more that I want to learn about and experience, but I would have never known of all of the things out there if I hadn’t had the opportunity to go abroad. At this point I can barely remember what my hopes and goals for this year at the beginning of it were, but I can tell that I’ve greatly surpassed those in ways I never could have imagined. Thank you so much for making this opportunity a reality for myself and for all of the other UCSD students out there looking to get a taste of the world beyond San Diego.

Mary Ma (China, 2015-16)

Until age twelve, I visited China every year with my family. The China of my childhood was a distinctly older and less developed country than the United States. Preparing for my departure in Spring of 2015, my base expectation was to understand new, modern China, as I knew that I was diving into a transitional time where old Chinese culture collides with explosive new growth.

No amount of hypothesizing could have prepared me for my actual experience during my year abroad there. I became fluent in Chinese, opening an entire new realm of opportunities after I complete my education. Upon arrival, I was immersed in a new China far flung from my childhood memories. The dusty old buildings of a bygone era had fallen to skyscrapers of glass and steel, tributes to an unrelenting pursuit of modernity. I found an internship at a non-profit organization, TEDxBeijing, where I was exposed to an extremely diverse and international group of colleagues. My experience at TEDxBeijing, nestled perfectly within the highly cosmopolitan Beijing ecosystem, led me to understand new China as a truly international culture.

I was very surprised at the potential for a career in China after graduation. Thanks to my year abroad and my learned proficiency in Chinese, new China’s vibrant wealth of opportunities are now only a plane flight away. The clash of new China and the 5,000-year-old culture it is enveloping was a fascinating thing to witness.

Despite this amazing experience, my year abroad was not without challenges. The people of urbanized China regularly experience prolonged periods of heavy air pollution. Experiencing this in person, rather than from the comfort of an international studies course in the US, fostered in me a great deal of understanding for the everyday struggles of the Chinese people. Through my time in new China, I came to a fundamentally new understanding of myself as both American and Chinese. My time in a completely foreign nation with its own unique culture reinforced my American self-concept. At the same time my immersion through language and experience allowed me to better understand that part of me is distinctly Chinese. Just as China as a nation is coming to realize it’s dual culture of growth and antiquity, my time there helped me see myself as both Chinese and American.

Daniel Lee (Japan, 2015-16)

During my study abroad program, I was studying at Keio University, a prestigious university located in the heart of Tokyo. I went to Japan with three goals: to raise my Japanese proficiency, to join a band to perform music, and to fully immerse in Japanese culture. I am delighted to say that by the end of my study abroad, I have reached all three of my goals and more.

At Keio, I took Japanese classes to further improve my Japanese conversational skills and writing. An interesting Japanese class I took was Honorifics, a special way of speaking in Japanese that varies depending on your listener. Since politeness is an integral part of Japanese culture, honorifics is something that one must master in order to speak good Japanese. In the class, we had to learn the different ways to talk to strangers, friends, teachers, managers, and so on. The practices of different scenarios during class not only improved my Japanese, but also showed me how Japanese, the language, is a vessel that carries the different attitudes that Japanese people carry towards other people. For me, it is mesmerizing to think how much of a culture is embedded in a language.

I also joined a band club at Keio University. Club activities are a big part of Japanese college life, something that American colleges usually lack; it is where people gather after classes to nurture their hobbies, ranging from orchestra to tennis to hiking. To my dismay, some Japanese people have this sense of exclusivity that makes it hard for a student studying abroad to join a club, but I was eventually able to find a band club that accepted me with welcoming arms. Joining a band club has always been my dream since high school and I am thrilled to finally have it fulfilled. Together with the other members of the club, we held monthly performances and occasional road trips. Band club is where most of my friends here in Japan are; through performing together, we not only improve our musicianship, but we also deepen the bonds we have between each other. As a bonus, I was able to constantly practice my Japanese and thus become fluent in it. The experience of trying and eventually succeeding in making friends in a completely strange environment using a different language was especially enriching and has certainly improved my interpersonal and communication skills.

I also went traveling around Japan during vacation with both Japanese students and also other exchange students, visiting all the famous places in Japan. I went to Hokkaido in the north during winter. There we visited Japan’s most famous zoo, Asahiyama Zoo, went skiing, ate a lot of seafood, and saw Japan’s prettiest night view at Hakodate. My friends and I also went to Kyoto and Osaka. Kyoto is a treasure trove of Japanese culture. We visited famous temples and even got dressed in kimono and walked around the ancient capital for a day. We also visited Uji, a town next to Kyoto that is famous for its tea. There, we had a lot of tea-tasting and experienced the traditional tea ceremony.

When school ended, I started interning at a software startup in Tokyo. My work is related to natural language processing, a field that is closely related to artificial intelligence. During this internship, I was able to complete a project that I am proud of. This opportunity led me to consider the possibilities of working in Japan in the future.

This year abroad went past in a flash. It was definitely an academically and personally enriching experience. On top of fulfilling my initial goals, I was able to further my programming skills via the internship and create lasting friendships in Japan. Through my contact with Japanese culture and people, I was able to open my eyes to the fact that the world does not revolve only around the United States; though the Japanese – or any other culture’s— lifestyle and values are different from those of the United States’, they are just as important. We can have a lot to learn if we step out of our comfort zone and experience, or even assimilate, parts of another culture’s lifestyle.

I never had the opportunity to meet Chris Borton, but while I was abroad I felt like we are connected through this shared experience. It is unbelievable how he is able to change and touch my life by giving me this opportunity to study abroad through the help of the Chris Borton Scholarship Fund. This eventful year is definitely one that I will not forget.

Megan Bright (Germany 2015-16)

It's hard to find just a couple of words to describe this year. I honestly don't think I had any concrete expectations before coming here and I think that's been one of the biggest blessings. It just means that every experience has been new and special. Even the difficult times like the very long and grey winter, which I've never experienced before, were a challenge and a major opportunity to learn from and grow. The weather is finally improving and spring in Berlin is absolutely beautiful. I also had no expectation for travel. I mean I planned on traveling but I had no set destination or number of places I felt I had to go. Because of this, I have traveled more than I could have imagined and to places I had never before considered. I went to Split, Dabrohvnic Amsterdam, Budapest, Vienna, Nuremberg, Dresden, Prague, Dublin, Barcelona, Valencia, Paris, Rome, and for my birthday in June I'm planning a trip to London. I have also had the amazing opportunity to travel by myself. That is an experience everyone should have.

The most difficult part about my year abroad would be that I can't think of a time when I wasn't at least a little homesick. I missed my family and California very much. And I guess I can be thankful to this experience because of how it has made me appreciate the people in my life and has actually brought us closer. I would say that this year abroad has made me proud of where I come from. I mean I've always been able to see the faults in our system but I still love it and I wouldn't choose to be an expat. But this experience has made me want to travel so much more and all over the world. That's another thing I've learned, it's not as big as we think. 

Austin Pukasamsombut (Japan, 2014-15)

My spring semester at Tohoku University ended very sentimentally as I had to spend my final moments with the friends I made. Before going our separate ways, we decided to spend our last weeks packed with all the fun that Japan had to offer, and so we decided to do something that everyone had on their bucket list.... climb Mt. Fuji! And so we did. Together as a group, we had a 10 hour climb up to the top of Mt. Fuji, where we were able to see Japan's beautiful sunrise. It was the brightest (and reddest) sunrise I had ever seen, making it very memorable. After that, we enjoyed our last days by enjoying some of Japan's summer fireworks and Sendai's Tanabata Festival, where the city was extravagantly decorated all around. It was as if the city itself was sending us off. The friends I made abroad gave me a broader outlook on the world and helped me improve myself as a person. I'm glad I met them all, and I'm sure we will all meet again someday.

Before our program's closing ceremony, we all gave a small presentation for our research projects. My research project on Autonomous Quadcopters for Indoor Navigation did fairly well and interested many people. If you would like to know more about my research project in depth, you can see my attached research report. It includes all the details of my project, as well as the problems I encountered towards the end that caused me to be unable to achieve indoor navigation as planned. I learned a lot from my 1-year research program, especially about the work environment in Japan. I gained useful experience in working in a graduate-level laboratory doing research on robotics that can be used to help people. It helped me decide that I wanted to do project-based positions for my future career, especially relating to research and development. 

Overall, I can say with confidence that I have grown tremendously both as a person and as an engineer during my one year study abroad program in Japan. I feel more confident and prepared as ever to continue my education and set out into the working industry. This experience wouldn't have been possible if it wasn't for your aid in funding my trip. I was able to focus on the things that were important to me thanks to the scholarship

Christian Koguchi (Japan, 2014-15)

During my trip, I was able to study in the northern regions of Japan to do research and learn Japanese and Japanese culture. During the 2011 earthquake in the Tohoku region of Japan, one of the greatest problems during the aftermath was the lack of communication and information. Many people were missing. Others were stranded for days after electricity went out. Many of the survivors’ families who were living outside of the region could not find a way to contact their families in this dire situation. The event marked the greatest natural disaster in Japan for years.

My research is about ultra-broadband communication. It’s a system in which people, even in the remote areas of Japan like in the far countryside and in the mountains, can receive strong wireless communications. When so many power lines and phone cables were destroyed, many people could not contact their families. Thus, I was part of the effort to research new ways for better communication that would be resilient in the event of a natural disaster.

I am ethnically Japanese, yet I have never been to Japan and my family hasn’t spoken Japanese for more than one hundred years. I’m basically as American as they come. Yet, during the earthquake and watching the news on CNN that late night, I was overcome with so many emotions watching people I have never met before suffering and praying during the tsunami. I wanted to somehow help in any way possible and I felt as powerless as the people being swept away that day. I raised money when I was in high school for donation for the tsunami victims. But, what I really wanted to do is someday go to the Tohoku region and help in any way possible. You made it happen.

Coming from a single mother-household, I was always in a bit of a financial issue when it came to school. My mother always talked to me about how money wasn’t everything in life. I took up odd jobs on campus to raise money any way I could to support my studies and family. When I received the Borton Scholarship, I felt like what was originally just a shot in the dark suddenly become an inconceivable reality.

But, as you can imagine, going to a foreign country and finally being alone and independent was one of the most challenging experiences I have ever faced in my life. It’s something they said in all the seminars and pamphlets, but it was actually very overwhelming and has changed so much about me. Let me explain.

I never knew how important language and communication was. Yes, I can’t speak Japanese, so I’ll have some trouble, but I didn’t really know what that meant. It meant that I couldn’t have a heart-to-heart conversation with my friends. It meant that I couldn’t try to win over my Japanese teacher who didn’t really like me very much. It meant I was constantly trying to defend myself when people thought of me not as a non-Japanese speaker, but as incompetent or just a prankster giving others a hard time. It was tough, but it motivated me and made me embrace not only being Japanese, but also being American as well.

Since, I was able to move on and reach an advanced Japanese level, which is considered a mastery of technical and business Japanese. Before I realized it, I was talking to my lab mates about our research, reading headlines on newspapers, and even doing solo travels across the country. Finally, I was working hard not as if my grades were on the line, but as if my dreams of helping the Japanese people in the Tohoku region were on the line – as if my dreams of being an excellent engineer were on the line – as if I were trying to live up to my Japanese heritage and place in the international world. I learned to take my career seriously and not just cram before exams because my career and my life meant something to not just me. I felt like I could have a real influence in what I was doing and on the people around me.

Now looking back from my cozy home in Los Angeles, I read the Japanese headlines last week about heavy rains, typhoons, and flooding across northern Japan. My friends are posting evacuation alerts on Facebook and social media about the flooding and landslide warnings near the Hirose River which was near where I lived. This time, many were able to get out and survive. Many were able to contact their families and contact authorities and help as soon as possible. The advancement and resilience of communications has made me so proud of how far we’ve come. Typhoons and earthquakes will keep coming to Japan in the future, but it’s getting better every step of the way.

I am not sure what’s in store for my future except that I want to continue studying engineering and continue studying Japanese! Whatever is in store for me, I want to someday make a difference in the world.

Thanks for making me feel so connected to my family history and helping me make my dreams of both engineering and going to Japan a reality. It may not seem like much, but it changed my life and me as a person.

Andrew Kubal (England, 2013-14)

Studying abroad has been an enriching kaleidoscope of experiences from the moment I stepped foot in England. I really enjoyed my first mini excursion to Scotland, which is a must. The food, the bone-biting frigid weather, the rich history, the Scottish accent, everything was unforgettably different for me. Skiing in the French Alps at Les Deux, exploring the German Pergamon and Deutsches Historisches Museum, drinking perfected Belgian beer (rated "best in the world"), intense climbing in Kalymnos, having the opportunity to meet various people of different nationalities, touring English cities such as Oxford, and living through my other numerous adventures exemplify the priceless European experiences I encountered. Even though my journey was filled with wonderful events, there are few moments that I will not miss.

Berlin still has my camera somewhere and I will not be quick to forget this. I’ll never know what happened to it because I believe it was stolen, but it equally could have been misplaced. RyanAir departures at 6AM were by far the most grueling part of all my journeys. They caused many of my sleepless nights between flights. The Pound and the Euro not only had lousy exchange rates, but they urged me to spend wisely, although that doesn’t mean I didn’t pretend at times I was spending dollars. In spite of these inadequacies, my mind isn’t fully aware yet that I am about to leave this amazing school and dynamic city, the latter which I now consider my second home.

I arrived in England with an American mindset. Through time, I grew to appreciate my time with others, a more balanced life-work ethic, and thinking with a sense of modernism wherever I go. We all bring along baggage, preconceptions, personal beliefs, and the full weight of our life experiences when we travel, but whatever baggage one brings to these places abroad, one should keep an open mind to fully experience what the culture has to offer.

Jessica Pham (France, 2013-14)

My year in Paris has been one of the most monumental, character-shaping, and honestly incredible experiences I have had in my, albeit rather short, twenty-one year existence. I remember feeling a palpable sense of apprehension and slight anxiety before my arrival last August–and understandably so, as I was not quite as well-versed in conversational French as I would like to have been, and had never travelled to Europe, let alone off the North American continent. The prospect seemed challenging, for these obvious reasons, but more than anything, completely exhilarating. Since my first days, which to be quite honest, rather resembled a blur until I adequately readjusted to the time change, I can attest to the widely claimed fact that Paris is truly a unique city, a world that doesn’t seem to exist anywhere else, and can completely enchant almost any person with its distinct charm. I had the pleasure of living with a wonderful French host-family my first semester and was therefore exposed to the kind of French hospitality that I probably would not have gained through the cafes of the city. They were, and still are, shapers of my experience here, as I was lucky enough to have spent months dining with them, eating and learning about French cuisine, and practicing my rather limited speaking skills. It was amazing to me that I could feel such a sense of home in their small apartment in the 19th arrondissement, even though I knew I was miles away from my own. I will cherish my time that I had spent with them, and am confident that I will keep in touch for many years to come.

Moreover, my time at Sciences Po was a very…enlightening experience. It actually proved to be one of the more challenging aspects of my time here, not necessarily due to the level of difficulty of the classes (which were more or less similar to that of UCSD’s) but the overall structure of the French education system. I found the rigidity of the professors, particularly grading wise, quite different from the American system that I am clearly accustomed to–I remember my political theory professor put the difference quite succinctly by stating that the “French way is to always point out the things you had done wrong”, while the “American way is to always encourage what you had done right.” This sort of mantra seemed increasingly apparent as I progressed through my year, but I found the difference after some time and adjustment, quite constructive. I also enjoyed being a part of a university with a much smaller student body. It was so interesting to be able to meet not only native French students, but also those from (quite literally) all over the world. These friendships, which have been cultivated by the shared experience of studying abroad, exploring Paris and travelling around the world together for a year, will be one of my fondest memories to take back home with me.

I feel so very fortunate to have had the chance to explore new countries and cultures, but also more importantly, myself. Of course, studying abroad presented its own set of distinct challenges–although I never really found myself to be ‘homesick’, there were definitely moments where I would find myself thinking about what events in my family and friends’ lives I was missing because I was here. The realization that I had missed a year’s worth of holidays, birthdays, weddings, graduations and other milestone events, struck me sometime at the beginning of this year, but I believe that it is one that will serve as a reminder to cherish such moments when I return back home. Moreover, there are small, rather obscure daily challenges that I had not quite anticipated–little things such as different working hours (this seems to still be somewhat baffling to me come every Sunday), overly crowded metros that you know completely violate all standards of safety, and general miscommunication with locals due to mispronouncing a letter in a particular word. But these things, as I would advise to any future students who will be in the same position, should be taken as part of the overall ‘ride’ of studying abroad. I believe that such seemingly unimportant ‘complications’ can slowly but surely help shape a sense of independence and confidence in one’s self and abilities. I have found this to be true in my own case.

It seems so very strange to be leaving after almost ten months in this city. I find myself thinking that even if I could live here for ten more years, I would still find new things to experience every day. The beauty and wonder of the people and places would still strike me. While I know that I will find my way back here (hopefully) in more instances in the future, I can see that nothing will be quite the same as my time spent as a student. I will always treasure and look back at this past year with the utmost fondness, knowing that my future return to this place will be that much sweeter.

Thank you so very much for these experiences, and so many others that are indescribable.

Molly Tremblay (Ireland, 2011-12)

Since my return to San Diego I've started working at the Programs Abroad Office; it has been rewarding indeed talking to prospective students, hearing their stories and sharing my own. This past week I took part in UCSD's Partners in Education awards ceremony in which I made a speech about my time abroad. In writing the speech I came to a few realisations that only really hit me tonight as I was thinking back on the ceremony. I mentioned that while I learned more than I could have imagined about Irish culture and its people, what was more suprising was all that I learned about myself.  As a whole, living abroad instilled me with a new sense of confidence and left me with a clearer picture of where I want my life to go. Knowing that I completed my lifelong dream of going to Ireland has left me with an assurance that I really can succeed in accomplishing life goals that, at times, seem so far away. My time in Ireland was life changing, and continues to affect me in ever surprising ways.

Tamar Freeland (Spain, 2010-11)

Studying abroad in Barcelona was the experience of a lifetime!  As I hoped, it pushed me to become a more independent, aware, and open minded person.  Also, I am proud to have met my goal of Spanish fluency, which has opened up the door to a whole new range of relationships, understandings, and opportunities.  Living outside of my comfort zone and home culture made me more adaptive and confident in my ability to meet and overcome new challenges.  It would be lying to say that I didn’t struggle: I was often frustrated by misunderstandings, I occasionally longed for familiarity and my friends and family at home, and I found it difficult to be and express myself in a foreign language, culture, and context.  Yet reflecting on these difficulties helped me discover my own personal strengths and weaknesses as well as interests and disinterests.  My experiences clarified my values and forced me to think about what I want out of my education, out of a career, out of myself, out of others, and out of life.  Only through an external perspective did I come to see how many things I take for granted.  I feel so fortunate to have had this enriching opportunity, and I highly encourage anyone who is thinking about studying, working, or living abroad to do so.  I was in Europe for 361 days, and I am so happy that I didn’t choose a shorter program.  In retrospect, I definitely needed a year to settle in, get to know the city well, establish a residential routine, feel like a local, and undergo the mental progression that comes with living abroad rather than just touristing around.  Because my experiences studying in Barcelona and traveling through Europe were so positive, I am now looking for a job or internship internationally, (possibly in South America).       

I am very grateful to all of the members of the Chris Borton Memorial Scholarship board for their support and generosity.  Receiving the scholarship really was a crucial part of making a lifelong dream come true, and studying in Barcelona was an experience that I will cherish forever.

Hannah Rahimi (Spain 2009-10)

Upon returning from Spain I found myself apologizing to people who urged me to tell them how my year was and telling them that I really could not feasibly tell them how much the year meant to me, how much it changed me, how much I saw and did and learned, and if I tried it would no doubt be at the expense of any original sounding description. My constant thought was “Wow I sound like a hallmark card!” Everything that I thought to say to describe my year came out sounding remarkably trite. But what I have come to realize after a couple of months being back in California is that despite the hackneyed timbre of my statements about my study abroad experience what I am feeling is cliché for a reason: it is the tremendous growth of self that is achieved by many people before me who have stepped out of their comfortable cultures and lived in a foreign country for a substantial length of time. But what is even more important is that I have realized that though the words I use to describe these feelings can sound faded and over-used, the feelings themselves are indeed original and novel because they are mine alone, they are not transferable through speech, through reading, or even through pictures, but only can be gained through personal experience.

Due to this abundance of people before me saying how their lives changed from studying abroad I left the country with a myriad of expectations about how I would find the year. I thought it would change my perception of the world, of myself, and of life itself. And it did. What I did not and could not expect, however, was the way in which these perceptions would change and the gravity of those changes that took place. I went to Spain to study literature and learn about the country in which the very authors I studied lived and wrote and while I did truly learn about the country in a depth which I never could have expected in the classroom I also learned how I can take that understanding and apply it to almost everything I learn. History is not just facts, it is the story of how we got where we are today and that story means everything to who we are and how we perceive the world and it is different for each person and each place. I left with the idea that despite cultural differences every person is more or less the same across the world. Instead I found that while we do all have many things in common there are fundamental differences between people such as values and lifestyles that change from place to place. From this I was able to see that it is really important to try to appreciate these differences and learn more about them rather than try to put everyone under a generalization. One of the most important things that happened was that I left with ten years of learning Spanish under my belt and I expected to be able to jump into fluency right away but instead found that the language I was able to read and write and use to converse in a scholastic situation was not anything close to the language I needed to interact on a day to day basis and I really did not feel fully comfortable with my Spanish until after having lived in Granada more than eight months. When before I would have to think through my words and stare intently in concentration to understand the Spanish around me now I open my mouth and without thinking can hold an easily flowing conversation without extra exertion.

After the first semester I felt as though I knew the city and I knew the culture and although I was looking forward to staying a semester longer I thought that it would not be all that bad to be going home then to return to my family and the comforts I had at home but what I did not realize was that although I had a comprehensive understanding of Granada from a traveler’s point of view I had no idea what it meant to truly live there. By the end of the year I did not just feel like I understood the culture and the city and the people there, I felt like I was a part of it. The cobbled stones that had charmed me at the beginning became the streets that I proudly walked with a sense of ownership and belonging, the once intriguing sights and smells of Granada were now signs of home and comfort.

When in Spain I found that the things I missed the most about America were the people and the food and the efficient lifestyle, now that I am back I find that I again miss the people and the food and this time the relaxed tranquil lifestyle. But now and forever I carry the possibility of both lifestyles with me and can choose how to live my own life somewhere in the middle of the two extremes, with frequent emails to the people I miss and attempts to cook the foods of both cultures in my own kitchen.

One of my favorite words in Spanish would have to be imprescindible, essential. That is how I feel about this year abroad. It has been imprescindible to who I am now and who I want to be. I would fully recommend studying abroad to anyone who has the chance and I would stress that in order to really take the experience to heart a full year abroad, also, is imprescindible.

Alexandra Delaney (Denmark, 2009-10)

Everyone reacts positively when I relay the fact that I spent a year abroad, even before I tell them what I did or how it changed me. It is generally assumed that a year away from home, in a place where you have a non-existent support system, is a productive experience for a person and a young person especially. After personal reflection and many conversations I am able to officially agree that I had an amazing time, or at least encountered people and places that I could have never imagined before I left La Jolla.

​Originally, I anticipated a notably challenging academic experience; after all, I am paying tuition to learn something. What surprised me, however, was how much I learned about and from people instead of from my syllabus. Not to say that I wandered around Europe and never attended classes. My goal was to integrate seamlessly, to dress like a Danish person, communicate with them, to be like them, and a successful student life was part of that. In fact I was so successful that by the time I left that the other exchange students even jokingly called me Danish because of my intense need to avoid being noticeably American.

Most of my learning happened while I lived with Danish people, attended classes with them, cooked with them, and traveled with them; even while I attended evening courses to be able to understand them. In fact I fell in love and out of love with a Danish student.

​After coming back I realized that obviously, I will always be American, or more specifically, Californian, and it was silly to think I could be anything else. However, my intense need to understand as an outsider provided me with a unique perspective on people that I had never had before.

​I studied evolutionary biology, anthropology, history, traveled to some of the most beautiful tourist destinations imaginable — if you ever get a chance to trek around Iceland then definitely take the opportunity and the time— but the most unique and special things I learned and witnessed were while real life was happening.

​When I was adjusting to a new city I saw how all of my floor-mates went out of their way to arrange transportation and explain their world to me. When my mother died I felt the support and kindness while I was trying to explain how my world had fallen apart. I met a new person and learned something new about life every day. I keep in contact with some directly, and the others still silently affect me below the surface, because they changed my attitudes and perspectives in an entirely surprising way.

​I will never forget the things I saw and did or stop being grateful for the opportunity to live for a year, to reinvent myself, and to come one step closer to being a better person.

Kipp Trieu (France, 2008-09)

I had to ask what ‘911’ was in France.  Not that I was in a burning building or anything, I was writing an emergency protocol for a Sciences Po summer program.

The French person who I asked knew immediately what 911 itself meant; I asked how.  “You see that in every American movie, of course.”  Bien sûr.

After spending time abroad I’ve come to the realization that immense as the United States might be (in political and cultural impact - my final exam prompt for “World Space” at Sciences Po was on American “soft power” in the public sphere… in other words from that class, ‘cultural imperialism’), we can’t afford to continually seek solace behind our Freedom Fries, especially in this age of internationalization.  We can’t afford to not know of and understand the world and peoples beyond our borders, for doing so gives us singular learning opportunities.  Having these experiences allows us to not only exposure to other peoples and their essences, their customs, culture, etc., but it also allows us to reflect upon ourselves and learn about our own mores and ways of “doing things.”  Indeed this pedagogy of “l’autrui” (a French word loosely translated to “those around us”) is valuable not only for people living and working internationally, but even more essential for primary and secondary education, I argue, and that “proper” education abroad experiences are particularly important for creating effective, aware world citizens.

During my studies and travels, I found that quite a few people speak English.  So why bother learning anything else?  This notion “translates” to lack of second language (and culture) education in primary schools, weak programs for languages & literatures other than English at university level.  UC San Diego’s French Literature department for example recently took a deep cut in funding, hence the department offers only a limited selection of courses.

But here enters a strange relationship between Guillaume le Conquérant and the GRE.  The former became the first Norman King of England in 1066, introducing French lexicon into the English language, the latter’s Verbal module tests on archaic English words, which often had French roots.  Indeed, learning French, a language of “l’autrui,” allowed me insights into my own language, and a (slight, but enough for grad school) boost on the GRE sans the use flash cards.  “Aggrandize?”  From the French “agrandir,” to make bigger.

More largely, learning about “l’autrui” can help us learn about ourselves.  The student abroad is engaged in a reflective process, forcing them to actively analyze home vs. host culture and to engage with host culture.  This process “makes sense” makes meaningful connections between one’s culture and the host culture, and gives the student a unique flexibility in understanding culture and the essence of people; this process is only available to students who study abroad.  Further, living with l’autrui can make one appreciate little things found at home like speedy lines at the post office or consolidated paperwork for going to the bathroom, while highlighting the nuances found in the host culture.  For example when one opens a bank account in France, a “conseiller,” the equivalent of a “personal banker” here, is assigned to your account, and this conseiller only will manage your account, whereas at banks here any personal banker will help with accounts.  This often causes time-consuming bureaucratic red tape (as I discovered) but it reveals the very human dimension of French culture, where a ‘no’ can in fact mean a ‘yes’ after a good amount of plying.

The lessons learned from the pedagogy of l’autrui, among them mutual respect and understanding, are important even for the primary school age, where social lessons heavily include respect for others and “getting along” and “sharing.”  As a soon-to-be teacher, I am fortunate to have had these experiences of learning to be a world citizen, and hope to pass on this wisdom to my students.

I applaud the CBMSF, which for me has embodied these world citizen principles with which we must move forward to be successful as a society, for continuing to target yearlong applicants to EAP.  Though this might make me a “study abroad snob,” I argue that to attain a degree of immersion that truly begins to offer unique understanding of the host culture and move from a temporary visitor status; this additional time is needed for the proper engagement of the student with the host environment and the pedagogy of l’autrui.

My experiences from the Education Abroad Program and from being a part of the Chris Borton Memorial Scholarship Fund have impacted my views on effective teaching, intercultural teaching and equity of education.  Further, spending time abroad has allowed me to learn and reflect upon myself as a person and as a productive member of the “global village.”  My hope is to impart to my students what I have learned of being a world citizen.

Joachim Lyon (China, 2004-05)

The scholarship I received while at UC San Diego had a resounding impact on me in both tangible and more psychological terms, and I’m happy to have a chance to share my reflections.

The scholarship I was awarded was the Borton scholarship for a year study abroad. Throughout my time at UCSD, I had to take loans and work (I used to work at the Mandveville Coffee Cart “Art of Espresso”) in order to stay afloat. This particular circumstance was the cause for a lot of anxiety and frustration each quarter because both my academic and extracurricular interests were very broad, and I did not want to give up any of them. On one hand, I wanted to study many things at once — even the demanding requirements of Revelle College were not enough for me: I wanted to major in cognitive science, take philosophy and political science courses, learn mandarin, study abroad for a full year, and even pack in some Chinese history. On the other hand, I also found myself in student government for two years, worked as a resident advisor, rowed crew, played basketball intramurals, and read and wrote items of my own personal choosing outside of class. And I wanted to do all these things without foregoing the possibility of affording graduate school, wherever that would be. Given these interests (as I look back), I was constantly forced to trade off academic pursuits, extra curricular pursuits, and the need to support myself in any way that could offset amassing loans. In some respects, my decision to take a fifth year by going abroad during my fourth year was a bit reckless — it essentially added on a year of loans to repay. But in doing so, not only did I take an important step in sticking to a no-holds-barred attitude towards self development, but I also found, for the first time, a tangible message that someone else respected and encouraged my goals and motives.

In my general application for an abroad scholarship, I wrote clearly and simply about some of these goals: I wanted to immerse myself in another culture; I wanted to return semi-fluent; I wanted to build bridges between my Jewish family and my new Chinese relatives by marriage (I was later to go visit them in Yunnan province). When I received the Borton scholarship of several thousand dollars, I simply remember feeling shocked that I had gotten the scholarship at all. Why had they picked me? What did they see in my application? I am a little embarrassed to say that, having amassed a solid debt in college so far, I almost didn’t notice or appreciate the amount of the scholarship. When it was credited to me, all I really noticed was a reduction on my university bill of the large amount that would have to be covered by loans. Yet the real effect that scholarship had on me — the first I had ever received — was the incredible feeling that someone had actually read my application, had seriously thought about what I had to say about my hopes and dreams and plans to achieve them, and had decided to invest in me. Later during my year abroad, the Borton’s only confirmed this deeper message, replying in length and quality to the stories and reflections I emailed to them. And when I found myself struggling as all serious abroad students do, I remembered that they knew I would do well, that I would learn something, that I would change deeply — they were prepared to be proud of my accomplishments.

I can’t impress upon you, or anyone else, how lasting was the emotional effect of that scholarship. Two years later, while applying to Edinburgh University’s master’s program in philosophy, I noticed that the university only offered two scholarships to American students. I thought of my relationship with the Borton family, and I applied for the Edinburgh scholarships anyhow, later receiving their International Masters scholarship of 12,000 dollars. But most of all, I also decided at this time to apply (recklessly, as usual) for the extremely competitive Jack Kent Cooke graduate scholarship — the largest and most flexible scholarship available to graduate students in the United States, awarding up to 300,000 dollars. The application took three months to complete. Each day I would ask myself, given the incredibly small percentage of applicants who get the award (I think it was 3.5% that year), why put in the immense effort? But I would also think, even if the award value is much larger than the Borton scholarship, why should they read my application with any less interest? And so I worked on it daily, receiving guidance and constructive criticism from Dr. Ross Frank and my research advisor Prof. David Kirsh — all the while trying to remind myself that I indeed had a chance. Against what felt like all odds, I became a JKC scholar during the summer before my year in Edinburgh: I knew then for the first time in my life that I would be able to afford both my Masters degree and a PhD program.

The day I became a JKC scholar, over three years after I received the Borton abroad scholarship, I wrote to the Borton family:

“…I want to thank you again for the Borton grant you gave me to study abroad. I’ve thanked you before, but now I want to give some context: the Borton grant is the first scholarship I ever succeeded in receiving. It made for me the possibility of such successes an actual reality — one which I ought not fear to strive for. I mentioned the Borton grant in my most difficult JKC [Jack Kent Cooke] essay response, where I commented on the dreams I had expressed in my small application to your foundation, and the ways in which I had realized those dreams during my study abroad. Had you not given me that first vote of confidence in what I intended to make of myself and my hopes and my ability to work hard, I would never have been able to muster the courage to go for the JKC scholarship, let alone write a compelling application.”

I recognize it must be terribly difficult to make scholarship decisions — there must be many more over-qualified applicants than the various funds, foundations, and generous individuals can possibly support. But I wanted the Bortons, and their board, to know that they had sent me a message which continues to reverberate in every step I take.

I recently graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a Masters in Philosophy, earning a distinction (honors) mark on my thesis. At present, I am a first year doctoral student at Stanford University, affiliated with the Centre for Work, Technology, & Organization. I hope one day to be a professor myself, not only teaching and conducting research, but also encouraging another young student to apply for the impossible, even if that impossible is only a modest scholarship to study abroad.

As you can see from my personal reflections, I feel it is important to encourage donors, even those with only “small” amounts to give, by reminding them that the psychological effect of being selected for an award likely does more good than even the increasingly important monetary benefits. Getting a scholarship, no matter how small, tangibly says: We think you are worthwhile; we think your efforts mean something; we take seriously what you are working on and we hope you too continue to take it seriously; we believe in you. In this way, scholarships not only open doors for those who already know they can succeed but just need the money — they also open doors for those who can reach and grasp so much more on the basis of just a little more reassurance regarding their value and potential. As it turned out, I was one of the latter.

Nicola Hil (France 2007-08)

Since my exams ended three weeks ago, June has technically been a month of vacation for me, meaning that I have spent a lot of time reflecting on my year abroad as I tie up loose ends and say goodbye to friends. Initially, I thought that writing up my reflections on my ten months in France would be relatively simple, because I already had so many thoughts in my head. However, now that I sit down, in one of my favorite cafés in the centre ville of Lyon, to write something concrete, I find that it is a much harder process than I thought. I was recently discussing studying abroad with my program director, Christine, and the fact that I don’t really feel like I am studying abroad anymore. Lyon has become much more than a destination to explore and a place to study. It is where I will look back when I consider the different places I have lived and called home. I am finding it difficult to write my reflections on my EAP experience because I have grown out of the EAP program and have touched on something much more complicated.

I can’t really speak for others, we all react uniquely to the situations we are placed in, but I will say that I now distinguish two kinds of study abroad students in my head. For some, France has remained a foreign country, a place to visit, and an opportunity to speak a different language from time to time. For others, France has become another home where the culture is now familiar, where the language is an ongoing communication with others, and where the complexities of the country have become apparent. It is perhaps easier for those in the first group to enjoy France and then to go back to California, which they never really left in the first place, and discuss their experience abroad. I count myself among the second group, which makes reflecting on my ten months in this country very difficult. It is as hard as when people ask me what my life was like in England or when non-Californians ask me to describe what California is like. How to describe something that is filled with a million experiences, where each town has a different feel and where living there is just what you do.

I feel very divided as I get ready to leave Lyon. On one hand, I feel connected to this place and my friends here, but on the other, I feel that I have only just scratched the surface. My level in French has improved and has surpassed my expectations, yet I know I am not fluent and could never be considered French. (After nine years in California, people still know from my voice and my mannerisms that I’m not Californian!) It would be nice to stay a second year; maybe then I would feel like I had learned enough! Studying abroad has given me a travel bug and a desire to learn more about subjects that interest me. There seems to be a never-ending list of things to discover and learn about! In that respect, I am not too sad to finish this EAP year abroad, because I know this will not be my last time in a different country or my last challenging, but rewarding experience.

Academically, this year has been extremely worthwhile, but not in terms of courses and grades. Since there is always the possibility that my courses won’t transfer (I won’t know until I get back and petition them), I quickly stopped feeling unnecessarily stressed about my degree in California. I took more units than was required, I made sure to take courses that reflected the requirements of the UCSD political science department, and I stayed in contact with my academic advisers. Otherwise, I just enjoyed learning about subjects that interested me and concentrated on improving my French. In terms of grades, the French system is very different from the American. All students are graded in relation to each other, meaning that usually getting the “moyen” or average is considered a good grade and anything higher is fantastic. Class grades in general are much more uncertain as they usually depend on one test graded directly by the professor. Usually I focus almost too much on achieving the best grade I can, but this year that mentality was just not possible. Instead, I concentrated on my own sense of progress and success. I tried to improve my writing and communication skills in French to minimize the difference between me and the French students. By the end of my courses I had no idea in terms of the grades I would receive, but I personally knew that I had done my best. During my last few exams of the year I forgot that I was an international student and just wrote as feverishly as the other students to get my ideas down in the allotted time. There is no doubt in my mind that I prefer the Californian system, but I know that I can hold my own in the French academic climate. I’m just a little worried now that my English has declined somewhat… So far writing this reflection has been a bit challenging, as I keep misspelling words according to the French spelling and want to use French expressions. For example: “I am not arriving at expressing myself clearly” is what I would write if I could use French!

As you know, I took advantage of my time in Europe by travelling a great deal, particularly to visit my family and friends in England. In that respect, this year has been a time of immense personal growth for me, as I had always been nervous about travelling to unknown places. Now if I want to see a place or meet up with someone in a different city or country, I do the research, hop on the appropriate transport, and get myself there! I find that I am much more confident when dealing with challenging situations and can distinguish between spilled milk and serious issues when getting frustrated or worried. I also value my loved ones a great deal. I always have appreciated and loved my family and close friends, but now I can see that distances are only physical barriers, they do not have to separate us from those we love if we are willing to put the time and effort into staying in contact. Visiting my grandparents and other relatives in England was a wonderful experience, as I was able to reconnect with them as an adult and on an individual basis. It was also lovely to see my mum after nine months and spend time with her in Lyon, where I have made a niche for myself. Travelling also made me realize how connected I have become to France, as I was always happy to come home to my apartment here. What a strange realization it was when I discovered that I felt more at ease being surrounded by French speakers in Lyon than by all the many English-speaking people in Greece and even in England!

I didn’t think it would ever happen, but recently I have begun to think in French. I pick up the telephone and have to stop myself from saying a French phrase to an Anglo friend. When thinking during a conversation, I also construct sentences in French without realizing and then have to scramble them into English before speaking to a non-French speaker. It was very satisfying on my recent trip to Nice to talk to people and see them realize that I do speak French. A man at the train station helpfully told us why the train was late and, remarking that we’d been talking in English, looked apologetic and asked if we could understand French. I said, “oui” and then ended up chatting with him for half hour about the train strikes, the government of Monaco, and the laws that regulate work hours in France. He interrupted me at one point with a rather surprised look on his face and said, “so, you really do speak French, your level is very good!” I think that may be one of the best compliments to get after the slow, halting process it took for me to really improve my French. And, of course, I still have those days when I get up in the morning and can’t seem to put a simple phrase together or when I enter a café and am left searching for the words to order something. If future study abroad students ever ask me about learning a foreign language, I will tell them that it is a hard and sometimes discouraging process, but in the end, if you put in the effort, you will improve and it will be worth all the work. Now I just need to learn Spanish… I’m enrolled in a class for beginners next quarter, let’s hope my French will help me a bit!

Looking back, the beginning of the year seems very far away now, yet I think my first month in France was the most important. Searching for housing was difficult and months later the ideal housing situation I ended up in has not dulled my memory of what a tough process it was. Being thrown into Lyon and living out of a suitcase while frantically searching through online ads for roommates was terrifying to say the least. However, I was surprised to find that I was extremely happy to be in Lyon despite the challenges of the housing search. My close friend Becky and I would say that everything would be perfect if only we had a place to live! And by some miraculous turn of events I ended up finding exactly what I was looking for: a single, furnished room in “collocation” with a French girl and with all the utilities included. I moved in immediately, saying goodbye to my friends at the residence we were staying at, and felt settled-in right away. After two weeks of sleeping on hard beds with unfamiliar bedding, it was incredible to go to sleep for the first time in my own bed. I think that was the best night of sleep I have had in Lyon! The initial elation of finding my apartment never really left me, mainly because as I got to know my roommate Anne more, I felt even more at home. It has been great to find an ideal living situation and get a close friend out of it! What’s more, throughout the year she corrected my French and even looked over my assignments to catch grammar mistakes!

Before coming to Lyon I was terrified about housing and it was the main aspect of studying abroad that I agonized over. If future study abroad students ever want advice, I would say that yes, finding housing is difficult and not fun. However, it is a fantastic way to get to know the city you have arrived in. You are instantly forced to take public transportation, get comfortable in internet cafés, communicate with people, and learn about banking, laws, and culture. For the most part, people are helpful when talking to foreign students, which makes the housing search a bit easier for internationals. If you don’t understand right away due to the language barrier or because you just don’t know what to expect with housing, it is absolutely fine to ask questions and seem confused. The people you talk to know that you are struggling with an unfamiliar language and country. Plus, being an international student is interesting, which makes you more appealing as a potential roommate. In the end, everyone on my program found housing that was ideal or, if it wasn’t ideal, they changed it.

Now that I am at the end of my year abroad I can say that it has been an extremely positive experience and a wonderful opportunity. I heard many people say that studying abroad was an incredible part of their time as an undergraduate. I definitely agree and hope that this is just my first experience abroad, not my only one. I am nervous to come back to California and sad to leave Lyon and my Lyonnais friends behind. However, I am beginning to feel ready for the next chapter, which perhaps shows that I have evolved as I haven’t felt prepared for that until recently!

Jenna Carlsson (Senegal, 2005-06)

Fun is not the word, Laura and I decided over 30 cent “couscous marocain” at the restaurant. We were thinking about our time abroad, how we will be heading home relatively shortly, and what it will be like to be back at home discussing our time abroad with others. If I could pick one word to describe my experience here, I stated, fun would not be it. No, Laura added laughing, fun definitely would not be the word to describe the year.

We were talking about what it would be like to regroup with friends and share experiences. It will be hard to relate, even with friends who studied abroad on other programs. Laura thought it would be hard to relate her experience to her many friends who spent the year studying abroad in Europe. Well, I know their experiences are very different from ours, I said, but it’s not like they didn’t have to go through culture shock too. True, she agreed, but I doubt they had travelers’ diarrhea. I thought it was possible. Still, she persisted, there’s no way they talked about their bowel movements as much as we did. OK, true, I said.

My concern is that people who spent their time abroad in Europe will come back to be like, Omigod! I had such a fun year! What about you? And we will be like…well, it was really hard. Laura jumped in: “I had to give bread to starving kids outside my cafeteria every day. Woohoo!” I chuckle. It’s true. I can’t compete with people who have had really “fun” years… but then again, that’s not why I came here. I didn’t come here expecting to have a really woohoo fun year. Not that there haven’t been many fun moments. There definitely have been really awesome times. But my goal in coming here was to learn… to learn so much… and I have definitely done that. That is what makes me experience a success. Kudos to you, Laura confirms.

No, seriously, Laura goes on, if I had to pick one word to describe this year, I think it would be ‘humbling.’ I nod in agreement. Humbling. Either humbling, or, ‘I learned a lot’, she says. Laura, I say, ‘I learned a lot’ is not one word. OK, fine, so, humbling, she decides. It was a good word.

It has been really hard at times… adjusting to so many new things, being on an isolated college campus (not that I’m not used to it at UCSD), dealing with language difficulties, feeling guilty for having money in a place so poor, learning that I will always be white and female, being called ‘la gazelle’ or ‘la belle’ or worst of all, ‘la mignon’ every day just for being white, trying to make friends across cultural borders…

But there is so much I would not have gained if I had not come here. I learned to appreciate so much, for one, but I also learned how much I really don’t need or even want. My eyes have been opened to so much more, I am open to so much more, and I am more the person I want to be.

Marilyn Shapley (Egypt, 2005-06)

“I have commuted between the world’s capitals:
Travel is no longer an achievement;
I must begin to do meaningful things.”

Dennis Brutus, I Have Commuted between the World’s Capitals

Thank God there are writers like Dennis Brutus to express the words bottled up inside as I try to describe what this year has meant to me. I know I expected more than just the stereotypical picture by the Sphinx with the pyramids in the background, but I greatly underestimated what I would take away from Cairo.

I’ve taken the hardest classes of my life, and I didn’t collapse. I discovered toilet paper is a privilege, not a right. I found out talking slowly and loudly will not improve my communication skills. I now have a friend to stay with in a lot more countries around the world. I can almost speak Arabic. I can pretend to know a little about refugee issues. I can even shake my hips like a belly dancer if Nancy Egram (an Egyptian singer) comes on the radio.

But, as important and memorable as these things are, they are not the greatest thing I take from my time in Cairo. What I really learned here is how little I know about the world. My dreams have grown exponentially since coming here, and not just in terms of where I picture myself traveling in the future. Being here has forced me to look at my plans for my education, job, even the friends I want to have, and the bar has been raised higher than it was before. I will take back a humble, hardworking spirit. It is a spirit that discovered the world is as big or small as I want it to be, and now I will reach for the stars and not just the sky. “I must begin to do meaningful things.”

Tamami Komatsu (Italy, 2005-06)

“Because it was starting to get dark and the streets were crowded, I bumped into a googleplex people. Who were they? Where were they going? What were they looking for? I wanted to hear their heartbeats and I wanted them to hear mine.”

Jonathan Safran Foer
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Although these are the words of Jonathan Safran Foer, it is really me talking and Chris, I know it is you as well.

I have spent almost a year now studying in Bologna, Italy and it’s been a lifetime. I’ve had the most amazing privilege of living and learning from three fabulous Italians and can honestly say that I’ve created a warm home and beautiful life for myself. Yet I have realized that no matter how hard I try I’ll never be able to express myself to them completely, that they will never see me how I see me, that some fundamental things about myself will never translate, will never make it over that barrier, that words are not just words but ideas, concepts, and emotions. I understand now the difference between being a liberal, open student and a liberal, open citizen. I know the agony of being generalized. I also know that with every experience a particular is automatically added to a chain of similar particulars that will eventually form a generalization, especially should it be a negative one. I know that openness can be a synonym for naive. I’ve realized that it is useless to tell others anything because in the end they already know it in the way they want to know it. I know that everyone feels justified for reasons they will never be able to express. I also know that all of what I’ve just said means nothing to anyone but me because all of that is founded on experiences that I will never be able to explain. I am 21 years old and I expect people to know and understand me from the moment they meet me. And you wonder why peace doesn’t exist in the world…. yet on the other hand, it’s kind of odd that it doesn’t when everyone, from the bottom of their heart, desires it above all else.

We’re listening for words; that’s the problem. Thanks to you, Chris, and the year you’ve given me, I know now what it is I’m supposed to be listening for: that universal beat that needs no common language or culture to understand. Finally, I know what it takes to be a global citizen. Oh, and Chris, I hear your heartbeat; it’s just a matter of time before we all get synchronized to it.