Whether students are looking to hone their professional edge, master a new language, engage in leadership and internship opportunities, explore new cultures or dive deeper into a field of interest, study abroad options can provide an opportunity for students to step outside their comfort zones and experience something new.
Cassidy Campanella, a Sharks Abroad peer advisor at NSU, spent the summer after her freshman year traveling to Italy for a shadowing program. She shadowed doctors, earned clinical hours and immersed herself in Italy’s rich culture. As she reminisced on her time abroad she recalled the amazing connections she made with the doctors and the people she met, as well as, the valuable insight and professionalism she gained from her experience.
“As a pre-med [student], I think experience matters a lot, in terms of professionalism and networking… There are so many opportunities to make connections with people that are abroad who are really friendly. If you want to get experience in your field, going abroad is an amazing way to do it because you get a new perspective,” she explained.
Unfortunately, for many, the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted plans to participate in international educational experiences and has continued to cast a cloud of uncertainty over the future of study abroad programs across the globe. However, although travel restrictions and COVID-19 regulations may persist for the foreseeable future, there is still hope that programs will resume in upcoming semesters. And even better, there are still plenty of ways to engage globally, even if it is from the comfort of your own home.
“We’re really pushing the virtual options because, if you really do want to do some type of study abroad, you can still do it. It’s still worth it. Even if you do it virtually, you’re still going to be gaining these great experiences,” said Chante Lively, a Sharks Abroad peer advisor.
Lively also emphasized that students can study abroad more than once. Electing to do a virtual option now doesn’t mean students won’t be able to experience a traditional study abroad in the future.
One of the great things about participating in a virtual study abroad is the opportunity it gives students to showcase their adaptability.
Jeannie Jaworski, the director of international affairs at NSU explained, “This ability to say that [students] have worked with these remote and distributed teams across the world, that they’ve worked across virtual barriers and language barriers in a remote setting, [that] they’ve even worked across even things like time zones — they know how to navigate those situations that could be very transferable to their goals.”
For students still yearning for an in-person travel experience, the Office of International Affairs at NSU is still helping students plan for Winter 2021 and future semesters. The deadline to apply is Oct. 1; however, the final decision on whether or not programs will operate next semester will be made at the end of November based on individual program and NSU policies. In preparation for upcoming study abroad opportunities, students are encouraged to look into the refund and COVID-19 plans for respective programs.
“I’m a big fan of saying that something can’t be unprecedented more than once. We need to take what we’ve already learned going through this pandemic and make sure that we’re using that knowledge moving forward. So, [we’re not just making] sure that students are fully aware of their study abroad programs and what the deadlines are, but also the refund schedules and things like that… So, really it’s just hoping for the best and preparing for the worst,” said Jaworski.
For more information on what programs are offered, financial aid, scholarships, events and more or to sign up for a virtual informational session, visit the Office of International Affairs’ website at nova.edu/sharksabroad or connect on their Instagram page @sharksabroad.
