"I grew a lot in my cross cultural business skills and in my Spanish speaking skills while abroad. My network expanded when I embraced the community around me."
Program: Maryland-in-Barcelona
Term: Spring 2023
Major: Marketing, College Park Scholars (Business, Society, and the Economy)
While studying abroad, I learned so much about interacting with people that come from different backgrounds, cultures, upbringings, etc. Study abroad taught me to have a lot of perspective and try to put myself in the shoes of the people around me, before making any judgements or quick conclusions. I grew a lot in my cross cultural business skills and in my Spanish speaking skills while abroad. My network expanded when I embraced the community around me. I made friends with cafe workers, workout class instructors, and supermercat cashiers.
A big part of my life in the states is being connected to a church. I would be doing a disservice to myself if I decided to watch my home church online instead of checking out what Barcelona has to offer. Now this was my second attempt at going to church here, but I finally made it to the International Church of Barcelona. I went to a cafe to eat before, and then as I made my way to church I saw this big community pouring out of the church doors. There were so many different kinds of people, from all across the world, and I was pleasantly surprised to find all of these believers in Barcelona.
Advice for future #TerpsAbroad:
For students of color (specifically Black students) it can be discouraging to study abroad because the percentage of students in many programs that look like you is very low. On top of that, in the country you travel to diversity is not guaranteed. I would advise students to not be disocuraged and to embrace their uniqueness. It can be challenging to be the only one in this space, but you are paving the way for future students.
SAVE, SAVE, SAVE before coming to study abroad. Even though my host country was cheaper than the United States, keeping up with my livlihood was certainly taxing. Also, create SUSTAINABLE memories. Travel intentionally and learn about each place you go to while you're there. Travel with people you're going to remember positively in 10 years, make your memories count!
One unanticipated challenge that I had was always being around Americans. I thought that while in Spain I would be less around my American counterparts and more around Spanish people. While I did end up finding Spanish friends, it was challenging to do so while going to an international school full of U.S. students.
If I hadn't studied abroad, I would have never interned in Paris!