Study Abroad with Endless Opportunities at MU
Samantha Bontrager
You can take a January session, a semester, or a full year of your time in college and use it as an opportunity to learn in another part of the country—or even the world—with the Study Abroad or Study Away programs offered at Manchester University.
Although the idea of leaving the country, or even the state, can be scary and intimidating, the opportunities are endless and as Manchester students indicate, experiences can create once-in-a-lifetime, unforgettable memories.
Thelma Rohrer, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities does double duty as the director of the Office of Study Abroad and Off-Campus Academic Programs. She said that Manchester offers three different programs: January sessions, one-semester programs, or full-academic-year programs.
She also noted that Manchester sends students to a wide variety of places like Brussels, Belgium; Cheltenham, England; London, England; Dublin, Ireland; Marburg, Germany; Strasbourg, France; Barcelona, Spain; Valladolid, Spain; Quito, Ecuador; St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago; Dunedin, New Zealand; Dalian, China; and Sapporo, Japan, for semester and full-year programs.
Baylee Swank, for instance, spent last spring in London. She experienced a sense of reverse culture shock when she got back to Manchester for this fall semester. “I couldn’t believe how much I learned about who I am as a person,” Swank said.
Manchester also has a strong partnership with the Chicago Center, which is usually used for semester-long internships and student teaching opportunities. Rohrer said that New Zealand, Ireland and England tend to be more popular for students seeking English-speaking placements. She also recommended that prospective travelers visit both the BCA Study Abroad website and the Chicago Center’s website which can be found at bcastudyabroad.org and chicagocenter.org, both of which give more in depth details about the whole Study Abroad process.
Often times, Manchester people talk about studying abroad and about all of the wonderful experiences that are available, but what about the idea of “study away”? This term refers to students taking off-campus courses in cities in the United States rather than going abroad. Kendal Whitford spent a January session in Atlanta. “I came back from that trip with a whole new understanding of what it means to be an educator,” she said.
So, if you are looking for a one-of-a-kind learning experience, stop by and talk to Thelma Rohrer in the Otho Winger Music Building, room 115, and pick her brain about your potential study away experiences.