Freshman Breana Brill's post on how study abroad "ruined her life" (in a good way!) was picked up by the Huffington Post. Read about how MSU's Freshman Seminar Abroad program changed her life.
Breana Brill is a first-year student at Michigan State University. She is a contributing writer to The Odyssey, a website that is "the ultimate source for millenial content written for students, by students." Yesterday she posted an opinion piece titled "10 Ways Studying Abroad Ruins Your Life." The piece was picked up by Huffington Post and republished in their College section yesterday afternoon. You can read Breana's post here, or view the original post to see some of her photos.
As you may have heard, MSU is well-known as a go-to institution for international experiences:
We are one of only two Big Ten university in the top 10 for international student enrollment and study abroad participation (Institute of International Education's 2013 Open Doors Report).
We rank #9 in the nation for the number of enrolled internation students.
We rank #4 in the nation for study abroad participation.
MSU's study abroad and service-learning programs are recognized as "programs to look for" in U.S. News & World Report's 2015 edition of America's Best Colleges.
Breana was able to study abroad in South Africa for two weeks during the summer before she started her freshman year. One of the unique opportunities that MSU's study abroad programs offer is that chance for students to participate in these eye-opening experiences before they even set foot on campus. This is part of the Freshman Seminar Abroad program. These programs allow students to begin their academic experience in a variety of locations around the world. MSU faculty lead the seminars each summer. Seminars explore global issues and topics first-hand. MSU also offers Freshman Seminars Away, which are equivalent seminars within the United States. You can learn more about Freshman Seminars Abroad and Freshman Seminars Away at http://freshmanseminars.msu.edu/.
While undeniably worthwhile, these programs are not something that all incoming students are able to consider. For some, the cost of an extra class and the associated travel proves to be prohibitive. The University Scholarships and Fellowships Advancement Office is working to increase the scholarship support available to students. It is our hope that some day any student who wishes to participate in a freshman seminar program has the means to do so. If you would like to learn more about our efforts to support scholarships for these programs, please contact our office at answers@supportforstudents.msu.edu or (517) 432-7345.
