A Siren Song: Studying Abroad by Paige

A Siren Song: Studying Abroad by Paige - March 2016 Scholarship Essay

When carefully considering my options for my future collegiate home away from home, I had one make or break item on my checklist: a study abroad program. Throughout my life I’ve had a serious case of wanderlust, so I would both metaphorically and literally jump for joy if studying abroad were mandatory. I recognize that some people may not feel as though far away places are singing a siren song, but even those homebodies need to take the opportunity to study abroad during college.
College is a time for exploration; studying abroad allows you to explore the world and also explore your self concept. Yes, you can achieve an understanding of yourself while throwing frisbee on the great lawn of your college campus, but maybe entering into a totally foreign situation is what it takes to find out what your true passions are. If you have lived in the same place your whole life, you may - with reason - wonder if who you seem to be right now is simply a product of your current circumstances, environment, and routine. In this case, nothing is a better cure than a juicy prescription for overseas adventures.
College is supposed to provide you with new perspectives. Yes, the girl living on the other side of the dorms has a conspiracy theory that the Loch Ness monster is a cousin of the dinosaurs dead bent on revenge. Is that something you can apply to a future career? Most likely not. Traveling abroad, however, allows you to immerse yourself in another culture and learn how to constructively analyze different ways of life. Moreover, the more you learn about and interact with other types of people, the more accepting you become. Now I’m not saying that mandatory study abroad could prevent all future wars and foster world peace… but it makes you wonder.
College is a time to push yourself. Your university will likely push your academic limits. As far as personal growth is concerned, that’s where study abroad steps in. Even if you are a traveller at heart, some aspect of living in a foreign country likely scares you. (What will I do if I get lost? What if I inadvertently insult someone when trying to pay them a compliment? What if I miss home?) Perhaps the most important lesson that studying abroad teaches you is this: life is not always going to be comfortable, but some of the best moments are when you step outside the lines of your safe comfort bubble. Do you really think you are going to be too afraid to go to the job interview when you singlehandedly navigated the subway in a foreign land where nobody speaks English?
In my high school, one of the most often heard complaints was that school didn’t teach you practical life skills. We didn’t have a class on how to balance a checkbook, file taxes, or rock an interview. Studying abroad not only forces independence, but it teaches you the most practical life skill of being a better person. I for one believe that colleges should have a vested interest in sculpting better people. Hopefully one day mandatory study abroad will be a reality instead of an essay prompt, but I promise you that as log as the Earth is spinning, I’ll be flying around it.