The Office of International Education (OIE) at Grove City College provides its students with an opportunity to be culturally immersed into the Korean culture through a unique exchange program called Bahrom International Program (BIP).
Affiliated with Seoul Women’s University, the four-week program has been offered to both male and female GCC students for over 15 years. BIP matches international students from around the world with Korean students to live, study, and explore South Korea together.
Lectures, which are all conducted in English, are held in the morning and followed up with field trips to historical and cultural site in the afternoon. BIP participants can expect to learn about topics such as business and economics, the history and politics of Korea, as well as art, music, and religion.
One of the many attractions of this program is that students from all freshmen through senior year can apply for it and all majors are welcome. Various past BIP participants have shared their adventures in South Korea through study abroad discussion groups, study abroad fairs, and the OIE’s annual posterboard fair.
Unfortunately, some students or prospective students are unable to listen to the stories or look at the pictures from the previous trips to South Korea and they miss the chance to get involved in the program. Thankfully, the sojourners from the BIP exchange trip compiled a video to show what is behind the program and hopefully spark an interest in the possible future participants. Check out the video below to see what participating in the Bahrom International Program is like:
Time, treasure, and talent — these are three areas of stewardship that often come to mind. But my dad always reminded me that there are other areas of stewardship, including one’s body, mind, spirit, and relationships. He told me not to underestimate the importance of relationships. As C. S. Lewis famously said in The Weight of Glory,
There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. . . . Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.
College students naturally have many opportunities to build relationships, whether with peers, professors, RA’s and RD’s, administrators, countless facility workers, or with the wonderful people at MAP and Hicks and the Student Union who prepare our food.
BBQ Dinner: We cooked for our French friends and invited them to the ESC at the beginning of the semester.
One of the special joys of being in France this semester is having the additional opportunity to build intercultural friendships. Our program is structured to encourage these intercultural relationships, as the American and French students have a weekly class together at ONIRIS, our partner school in Nantes, and then go to dinner together nearby.
This year, the cross-cultural class challenged students to think about the ways cultural differences can be a barrier as well as a stepping stone to advancing intercultural communication. Oftentimes we have projects and discussions in class, allowing us to get to know each other better while learning the course material.
I am definitely a fan of the weekly dinners after class. We order in French, get our food (cafeteria-style), find a table, and eat with our friends. Most of our conversations are in English, though my friends were curious about my progress in French and this week asked me to try saying a few things — and were quite pleased that I could do so, even though I have very limited grammar and vocabulary.
Some of our class projects are quite fun.
We also had a Christmas party at the study center and are invited the seventeen French students to come as well. It was such a blast!
Anyone contemplating the program should consider the value of making friends with students from other cultures, as it is something that is highly encouraged. Depending on one’s involvement at our church, it is also possible to get to know students from many other countries as well. The church also hosts an international student’s ministry which serves people from all over Asia, Europe, and Africa.
I’m grateful for the experiences I have had and hope to spend these final weeks valuing friendships even as I finish some big assignments and take final exams.
As a senior, when I look back over my four years at Grove City College, one thing that will always be a huge part of my experience was the opportunity to participate in the College’s Inner City Outreach (ICO) program. The program designs missions trips to almost 20 places both here and abroad every year and they are a wonderful way to get involved in service.
I have had the privilege of going to Costa Rica three times (once as a participant and twice as a leader). There are generally 11-13 members of the team, and our trips generally last 10-12 days. We stay at a church a little ways outside the capital, San Jose. During our time there we participate in service projects, host vacation bible school for the children of the neighborhood, and build relationships with families of the church. We have team members every year with varying language ability; therefore knowing Spanish is not a requirement.
I value and appreciate that this program is truly student-led. Leaders need to attend several training sessions put on by the Director of Campus Ministries, Devi Wintrode. Other than that, we are on our own, which gives us a large degree of independence and room for growth as leaders and team members. We do not have adults that attend the trip with us, which forces the leaders to plan every aspect of the experience. These tasks include raising and designating purposes for the money, communicating with the hosts where we are serving, buying plane tickets, and ensuring that our team members are accounted for during our trip.
The independent nature of the trip benefits our leaders as well as our team members, because for many of our members, this is the first time they have ever traveled without a parent or family member. College is the perfect time to go on an ICO trip because it can be such a formative experience and can cultivate the desire to participate in missions later on in life.
One of my favorite aspects of the ICO program is the amount of culture we are able to experience while we are there. Since we stay at a church and not with a missions organization, we do not converse with or greet other Americans. Our only interactions are with Ticos (how Costa Ricans address themselves) which provides us with an excellent opportunity to build relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We share meals, work alongside one another, and play soccer together. These individuals are always so happy to see us and share their life stories.
At the church, participate in our designated work projects and spend time with the children. Interestingly, the Ticos do not care about how much work gets done, but rather are concerned more about about building relationships. This is such a refreshing experience to be separated from the busyness of a college campus.
I have returned from each and every one of these trips refreshed and eager to continue to serve the Lord for a new semester here at Grove City. I have gained such a valuable perspective from the culture we get to experience in Costa Rica, the camaraderie we build as a team, and the lasting relationships we create during our time there.
Stereotypically on our beloved campus, it seems that the engineers just live in the Hoyt Engineering building and do homework all day. However, you could just as easily find them on the roof of the Hall of Arts and Letters, in secret tunnels underneath the Student Union, or even exploring the streets of Paris, France. There are so many opportunities for our engineers to experience tours of the engineering systems that operate our campus, as well as travel abroad with our France program. Dr. Erik Bardy serves as a tremendous resource to our students by presenting them with multiple opportunities within the diverse discipline of engineering.
Originally from Poughkeepsie, NY, Dr. Bardy studied his undergrad and Ph.D. in Buffalo, NY, but traveled abroad to France for his Master’s degree.Bardy found Grove City College through some friends and faculty, and became interested in the possibility of a program where engineers could travel abroad. Bardy explained, “A very small percentage of mechanical engineers get to study abroad…developing international skills in cultural competence and being able to function, operate, and work in a culture where people think differently about how things should be done is important.”
Engineering is a very broad degree and there is so much that an engineering student can consider in specializing their career path. Bardy discussed, “My biased opinion is that [engineering] spans a lot. Your education will not be specialized on one area, you will be trained in a broad spectrum. There are a lot of different things you can do and you have to find your interests within that.” Within engineering, there are classes about alternative energy systems, Biomechanics, HVAC and Aerospace where students can study focuses for potential career paths. The great thing about the engineering program at Grove City College is that students stick together. Bardy said, “Very rarely will you get a non-major in an engineering class. Sometimes physics majors, but usually all engineers.”
The European Study Center is a program designed for mechanical and electrical engineers to have the opportunity to take core classes from Grove City College with Grove City students for a semester in Nantes, France. This program works with the French school ONIRIS, where our students take one course with French students to enhance their intercultural skills. Being fully bilingual and having family history in France, Dr. Bardy has traveled with students to France many times with intersession courses, and plans to take on the ONIRIS program within the next few years.
The importance of communication within engineering is something Dr. Bardy implements through his classes. “Classically you learn how to write technically – abstracts, product descriptions, presentations – and you start learning about your audience,” Bardy explains. Every senior mechanical engineer works with a team on a senior design project for their final semesters with the goal of creating and explaining things to people who do and don’t have technical backgrounds. This is great hands-on experience aside from an internship where students can get a feel for what working in the industry actually looks like.
Now you might be wondering where the scuba diving and swing dancing steps in to all of this – Dr. Bardy does have a life outside of engineering and enjoys these unique hobbies. Bardy became interested in scuba diving through his Ph.D. dissertation where he created a wetsuit designed for military use. He also enjoys swing dancing with his wife, and can frequently be seen speaking French in the cafeteria to his younger daughter who will most likely become bilingual as well. Despite the stereotypes that may surround busy engineering students, our engineers have plenty of opportunities to use their creative skills all over the world – and sometimes they do leave Hoyt.
As a prospective student, you might be asking yourself what exactly a Communication Studies major is? You know what a journalist, broadcaster, and writer does, but how does that fall under one general “Communications” degree?
When I first began my college search, I had no idea what I wanted to do or even if college was the path I was supposed to take. I knew that I liked writing, so I considered studying English. Then I thought no, too many books and old authors I don’t care about. What about my passions for theater and singing – maybe I could be a music major? Then I realized I can’t play an instrument, nor did I have the patience to learn. I also loved learning French in high school, but could I really become fluent? How can I combine writing, public performance, and communicating with people on a professional level?
Discovering Communications was the answer that combined all my interests. The Communications degree is wonderful because it is broad enough for you to try multiple things, but also allows opportunities to narrow your focus.I have had the chance to take classes in the fields of business, marketing, art, Christian ministry, foreign language, journalism, and many more dynamic fields that a Communications degree has to offer. I found my niche in Communications because I realized that everyone has a different goal or passion, but with a like-minded, creative mindset that utilizes each unique skill specifically.
By learning in an environment with people similar to me, I’ve become more vulnerable in the classroom. It’s easy to communicate with others who love to get better at communicating, and Grove City has taught me how it feels to actually start caring about what you’re learning. So allow me to share with you some “typical Comm. major” things that you might relate with.If you enjoy..
Reading or writing blogs
Watching and critiquing movies & wish Netflix could be a career (hello, film class).
Using social media for more than your friends’ profiles
Listening to and watching sports broadcasts
Doodling in your spare time and want a way to pursue art
Finding wisdom through TED talks.
Be sure to take serious thought into how you can realistically pursue your passion and turn it into a degree. If you’ve never heard of TED, this is a great source to listen to other scholars about ideas, career paths, and almost anything you might find interesting. In the meantime, check out this great talk about how to be a better communicator.
Last spring, I had the opportunity to study abroad for four months in France.
Grove City has a wonderful study center in Nantes, but I chose to go through an outside study abroad program rather than directly through the College. There are many different options for studying abroad that aren’t only through Grove City; they require a bit of an application process the semester before, but my program provider had wonderful people working there who were able to help me through every step of the process.
Another helpful event that the College puts on each spring and fall is a study abroad fair that brings in a number of different program representatives, which was a great opportunity for me in being able to talk to the people who work for these programs.
After much consideration of what I was looking for in my experience, I determined that my three main objectives were to learn French, to live in a somewhat large city, and to get out of my comfort zone by going on my own without anyone I knew.
After doing a lot of research, I decided to study in Paris at L’Institut Catholique (Catholic Institute). All of my classes would be in French, I would have the opportunity to live with a host family, and I would be able to live in and explore the city of lights!
I visited Paris for the first time three years ago on a trip I took with my brother and sister through several European countries and I remember being a bit skeptical before I arrived there. I reasoned that since everyone raves about Paris, could it really be that wonderful? Spoiler: I loved it. I loved the Eiffel Tower and how it towered over the city, I loved the quaint streets, the quiet cafes, and the stunning architecture of the buildings and bridges.
When I decided to return to Paris to study there, I was beyond excited, but I had no idea just what an amazing experience I would have. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.
To set the scene, I lived with my host mom in a huge apartment complex in the 19th arrondissment, which is in the northeastern part of the city. My University was in the 6th, which is in central Paris, just south of the river. My daily commute (when I say daily, I only had class Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays) was 35 minutes by the Metro, which was one of my favorite parts of the day. I loved the idea that if I minded my own business and didn’t open my mouth, I could be French!
As I mentioned, all of my classes were in French and were each three hours long at a time, usually from 9:00 am-12:00 pm, or 2:00-5:00 pm. My grammar and writing class met three times per week while my Discovering Paris and Parisian Cinema each met once. I studied with international students and made friends from all over the world including Japan, India, Chile, Colombia, and Taiwan. Class was a neat experience because much of the time the only thing we had in common with our fellow students was our (albeit somewhat limited, especially at the beginning) French ability, so we were forced to use it in order to communicate.
There was something so freeing about being anonymous in a city as majestic and beautiful as Paris; I could walk down the street and take everything in without anyone noticing me. My program provided me with a Navigo Pass, which gave me access to the Metro and bus systems in the entire ile-de-France, which extends quite a bit out of the city. The possibilities were endless; I could go see all the museums, parks, stroll along the river, anything I wanted.
Living in Paris made me more aware of the world around me. I loved the way in which Parisians approach life: they are on time to work, but think nothing of enjoying a cafe crème for a few hours in the afternoon with a friend. I loved watching all of the people on the street and trying to guess their destination and learning how to wander the different neighborhoods and streets without a destination.
In coming posts, I am going to explain more of the different aspects of my life abroad and some of the things I learned, but suffice it to say that it was the best decision I’ve made so far in my life. I will be writing about some of my favorite museums, my favorite places to visit, and several of my different experiences outside of France. Come along with me to relive my dream of a semester!
For Grove City College students, studying abroad is far from a foreign concept. Earlier this semester the Office of International Education hosted its biannual Study Abroad Fair in the Hall of Arts and Letters, where recruiters from various programs spent the morning selling their exotic wares to students pining for a good adventure.
Although an entire semester away may seem daunting when it comes to meeting academic requirements, graduation still rolls around on time for those who study abroad, and the value of the experience will often boost those grads’ chances of landing great jobs. And although it may be tough for engineers to take time away from their hover crafts and thermodynamics for foreign excursions, especially compared to those in the fields of, say, international business, communications, foreign languages and the like, Grove City engineers have equal opportunity to take part in the study abroad experience—a rarity at many other schools.
Meet Austin Eckhardt—a junior Mechanical Engineering major at the Grove. This past fall, Eckhardt ventured to France. Aside from getting his fill of crepes, baguettes and Brie, Eckhardt took advantage of the opportunity to travel and explore Europe, hitting Spain, Italy, Ireland, Switzerland and the Netherlands and made more memories than he could count.
Eckhardt was also grateful that Grove City only charged him $300 on top of tuition to go abroad, the fee of which covered the entirety of the trip, including airfare.
After having such a formative experience during what he considered a worthwhile investment of a semester, Eckhardt would highly encourage all students to take advantage of the study abroad program. Eckhardt is already getting his passport ready for more stamps. Could your passport be talking to you?
To get a glimpse of Eckhardt’s life as a Frenchman, check out his video below that captures the multifaceted beauty of Europe and the essence of the study abroad experience.
In front of telephone booth in LondonLast spring semester, current senior Alyssa Brossman had the chance to study abroad in Seville, Spain. The experience proved to be one of the most memorable and fulfilling opportunities she’s had.
Alyssa’s love of travel and her desire to explore outside the country mixed with her major requirement to study abroad pushed her to make the experience happen. As an International Business major with a focus in Accounting and Spanish, she knew Spain was the perfect place to go.
The dates of her study abroad excursion spanned from January 25th to May 2nd with an extra week of traveling to various places extending her trip to May 9th. She stayed with a host family in a city in southwest Spain called Seville, and lived with her host mom, two host sisters and an American roommate. She took classes at a local university, Universidad Internacional Mendez-Pelayo, within a 20 minute walk of her apartment with other students from her program, International Studies Abroad (ISA).
Looking back, Alyssa notes that some of the best parts of the experience were making friends from around the U.S. that were similarly studying abroad, getting to know the locals, experiencing new cultures and being able to easily travel to different places.
In the Garden of the Alcazar in SevilleFrom traveling around cities within Spain such as Madrid, Toledo, Malaga, Granada, Cordoba and Cadiz with her program to visiting other countries on her own like Portugal, Germany, France, Morocco, the Netherlands, England, Ireland and Italy, Alyssa’s few months abroad were filled with unique and exciting adventures.
Of all the places she traveled, London, England and Dublin, Ireland, proved to be her favorites. She traveled to these cities by herself during her seven-day spring break. She was able to walk a giant loop around the city of London, ride the London Eye and watch “The Changing of The Guards” at Buckingham Palace and to tour the Wicklow Mountains and see the bridge from the movie P.S. I Love You while in Dublin. The trip was a little scary for her since she traveled alone, but it was nonetheless exciting and unforgettable.
On top of “Las Setas” overlooking SevilleThe study abroad experience as a whole really helped Alyssa become more independent as a person and stretched her out of her comfort zone. Although it was nerve-wracking to travel to new and different places and deal with language barriers and unknown customs, the experience really helped her grow.
She sums up her time abroad by saying, “It was an incredible experience. I learned so much about myself and grew as an independent individual. It also gave me a glance into other cultures and a chance to see how other people live.” She describes the city of Seville as historic, welcoming and homey, and she could not have imagined a better place to live during her study abroad experience or a more fulfilling time exploring the world.
To learn more about study abroad opportunities at Grove City College, visit this link.
Dr. Hülsmann addresses students at Freedom Readers
In what has become an annual tradition at Grove City, we recently had the honor of welcoming Dr. Guido Hülsmann, professor of economics at the Université d’Angers in France and a Senior Fellow at the Ludwig von Mises Institute for a two-week visit. During his stay, he guest-lectured in Dr. Jeff Herbener’s ECON 456 Financial Markets and Institutions class, and on the evening of February 10 spoke at The Center for Vision and Values‘ Freedom Readers lecture series. In his talk, entitled, “Refugees: Social Bane or Economic Boon?” Hülsmann addressed the issues facing Europe due to the recent mass migrations of Middle Easterners to the European Union.
In introducing Dr. Hülsmann, Lee Wishing (Administrative Director of the Center for Vision and Values) said, “This is one of my favorite times of year, because this is when Guido comes back.” This remark received nods of agreement from many in the audience who had heard Dr. Hülsmann speak in previous years, and that evening he did not disappoint. His unique perspective as a German native and French resident certainly intrigued the students and faculty gathered ’round, who showed hearty approval with thunderous applause.
Dr. Hülsmann’s English language writings include The Ethics of Money Production and Mises: The Last Knight of Liberalism. I had the privilege of listening to Dr. Hülsmann’s lectures in Econ 456 and at Freedom Readers, and he graciously agreed to sit down with me and share a few details about his career, his research interests and his opinion of our economics department, which I am happy to now share with you.
[The following is a transcript of the interview conducted on February 10, shortened and edited for clarity]
Matthew Leverknight: To begin, can you tell me a little about your background and how you came to economics?
Guido Hülsmann: I started studying in Germany at the Technical University of Berlin, a program double-majoring in mechanical engineering and economic science. Then I discovered pretty quickly that economics was the field that interested me the most, so I began specializing as far as possible in economics, still graduating with degrees in mechanical engineering, business studies and economics. Then I studied more and more economics and did a Ph.D. in economics. At the beginning of my Ph.D. studies I discovered the Austrian school of economic thought and decided to do my dissertation based on Ludwig von Mises’ monetary work. That proved to be very stimulating intellectually and helped me a lot to advance my knowledge of all things related to money and finance, but, it was a big bane on my professional development in Germany because nobody at the time was interested in Austrian economics. Today things have changed, fortunately – a little bit. So then I decided to go abroad and fortunately I got post-doc scholarships which permitted me to go first to France and then the US. In the US I was first at the University of Buffalo (SUNY), went to work for five years with the Mises Institute in Alabama, and eventually returned to Europe. It was then that the demand for the services of Austrian economists began to increase.
ML: Your resume says you like researching the conceptual and philosophical problems of economics. Can you elaborate a little on what that means for you?
Dr. Hulsmann explains the effects of mass migration to GCC students
GH: I was always interested in this, and in my economic research this is reflected in the fact that I’m interested in questions related in methodology and epistemology, how do we know what we know in economics, what is the basis of this knowledge? What are the objects and things we have knowledge about, and then as far as the economic analysis is concerned, I was always interested in the question of what philosophers would call the ‘primitives’ of economic analysis, the basic elements beyond which you cannot go. One example would be the analysis of profit and loss which is related to the concept of equilibrium. I think that you have a dichotomous category at the basis of this whole analysis: the difference between success and failure. So these are basic categories of economic analysis which then show up in the equilibrium, show up in profits and losses and so on. Beyond which you cannot go. There is a tendency some economists have to explain why you have success and failure, but I think that it is not possible to do this, precisely because this dichotomy is a primitive, you cannot go beyond it.
ML: So you’re saying economics can only answer so much, and then we have to cut it off there? That because economics is designed to function a certain way, to answer questions beyond just who won and lost can’t really be done?
GH: Yes, such questions cannot be answered with the tools of economics.
ML: One thing I noticed during your lectures to the ECON 456 class, was your mentioning the “moral and political elements of economics”. What role does your own moral belief play in how you look at economics – or what prescriptions you would prescribe?
GH: Of course your own moral beliefs always bias you in your life in favor of certain activities, and in favor of certain things that you’re interested in. Also they bias you in favor of certain political solutions that you think appropriate and so on. There’s not a difference I think in my case compared to anybody else. Of course for a scholar that’s a tension, because as scholars we are supposed to go beyond these biases and to fact-check them. But I guess that’s of course what I do, like all serious scholars are supposed to do. But I also like to stress that scientific inquiry leads you to understand mechanisms though which our spontaneous moral dispositions are reinforced or undermined. I’m interested in these kinds of questions: How do policy changes, or policy stances that we take, through mechanisms that we deal with in economics modify the moral disposition of the population.
ML: So would you say that the study of economics can clarify individuals’ own moral sense?
Dr. Hulsmann chats with a student post-lecture
GH: Right. On the one hand, it clarifies the importance of certain moral attitudes that we have, and it helps you to understand the potential threats that come to the moral foundations of the free market economy, coming from different sources, but in particular from government intervention.
ML: To talk a little bit about your relationship with Grove City, how many years have you been coming here to visit on a regular basis?
GH: The first time was – on a regular basis, I would say since 2006. Dr. Herbener has invited me exactly in the same way, to give a couple of lectures and to teach segments of a class. At the time I think it was ‘International Economics’ or something of the sort, and he’s found funding for this undertaking every single year since. So this must be the tenth or eleventh year now in a row that I’ve come to Grove City College.
ML: You’ve worked in several different countries in Europe, you’ve worked here in the United States, and so based on your travels and your interactions, how would you say that Grove City’s economics department stacks up against other undergraduate economics programs you’ve interacted with?
From left: GCC econ department chair Dr. Jeff Herbener, GCC professor of economics Dr. Shawn Ritenour and Dr. Guido Hulsmann
GH: I think it’s excellent. I mean, both as far as the level of students is concerned, but also the professors. All people teaching in professorships, in particular Dr. Herbener and Dr. Ritenour are excellent pedagogues [dedicated to teaching, not just research]. And this not just my personal impression, but can be measured in terms of student output, papers that they’ve been writing and have been presented at conferences. In Grove City you have the annual Austrian Student Scholars Conference, some people have become professors themselves, in economics and also in other fields, so I think the quality is demonstrated.
And plus, here you have the opportunity, which is unique as far as I can see, that you have a whole department that teaches economics around Austrian economics. The core of your curriculum is Austrian economics. You learn the Neoclassical approach as well, of course you have to learn this, but the core is Austrian. There’s no other school in the world where you can do this. I know of no other school, maybe except for the Universidad Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala, of which I have heard but which I have not yet visited. Maybe there’s also one in China, Russia, some language that’s not accessible to me, but I doubt it.
ML: Thank you very much for your time, you’ve provided us with some very interesting and valuable perspectives.
If you are interested in learning more about the GCC Economics Department, please visit their page on the GCC website. To watch streaming video of Dr. Hülsmann’s 2015 Freedom Readers lecture about the Charlie Hebdo massacre in France, you can visit the Center for Vision and Values’ page here.
During her sophomore year at Grove City College, Samantha Parry (‘16) received an e-mail inviting her to apply to the college’s study abroad program in Nantes, France. Samantha, who had always wanted to visit Europe, decided that this opportunity was too good to pass up.
Samantha in Nantes, France
The following year, Samantha spent the fall semester with twenty three other Grove City College students, from a variety of majors, at the Grove City College European Study Center in Nantes, France.
One of the unique aspects of the Nantes program is that it gave Samantha the opportunity to earn credits for her mechanical engineering major. Through one of her classes at the Université de Nantes, Samantha gained helpful insight into the field of engineering beyond learning technical skills.
“We took most of our classes through Grove City, but one class that we took with French students was called Engineering Management and it was basically learning about different cultures and then learning how to manage projects cross-culturally,” Samantha explains. “We learned about how cultural nuances can affect how you make a business deal or work on a project and things like that, so that was cool to learn about but also cool to get to know French students…I think that getting to know them, doing projects with them, and learning about French culture helped me be more objective in how I treat people and situations and I think that learning more of the business and personal relations side of things is something that engineers don’t really get through engineering school,” Samantha explains. “If you are going to be an engineer one day, you’re going to have to deal with things internationally. Technology is worldwide and it [studying abroad] gives you so much more of a global perspective that I think is really important for anyone, including engineers.”
Samantha and GCC students in Paris
Although Samantha says that it was an adjustment to live in a different culture, she explains that Nantes became like a second home to her. She distinctly remembers a moment when she felt at home in France.
“I was out in town during the day and we went down to do some shopping and I think we went to get lunch crêpes,” she recalls. “Sometimes there are street performers, but on this particular day there was a whole drum line and choreographed dance group. They had all these different types of drums and there was a huge group of people around who were enjoying them. It was so cool that a lot of people took the time just to watch them. Even just that day, realizing that I could get around the city totally fine—I knew where to go, I knew where to shop, I had my favorite crêpe place—it was like it became my home city…being totally immersed and getting to the point where I felt really comfortable in the city and in a different culture and being able to enjoy it with them [the locals] was a cool moment.”
Not only did Samantha learn more about French culture, but she was also able to explore other European countries during breaks. One of Samantha’s favorite memories from her study abroad experience was meeting up with a Grove City student who was studying abroad in Italy at the time.
Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy
“The second [favorite memory] would be in Florence, which is the place we went during Thanksgiving break. I had previously contacted a Grove City student that was studying in Florence and we met up at the steps of the Il Duomo and he walked us around and took us to his favorite gelato place and then we sat on a bridge there, looking at the famous bridge in Florence. Sitting there, at nighttime, eating gelato, with someone else from Grove City in Florence at a popular landmark was surreal,” she says.
After returning home with gifts for her family members and a camera full of photos, Samantha says that she would love to go back to Nantes.
“If you would have asked me which country I would have wanted to study abroad in [before college], I wouldn’t have said France because I would have rather gone to Spain or Italy, but after going to France and living in Nantes, I realized how much I loved it and how much France had to offer. I learned so much and I loved it there” she says.
Learn more about the Office of International Education here.
Learn more about the mechanical engineering program at GCC here.
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