At Amherst, tons of people study abroad, especially during their junior year. Studying abroad can be a valuable experience because it’s a great opportunity to get to immerse yourself in a new culture, and even get to practice a new language, for a semester. Also, many students are able to get credits abroad for their majors. Studying abroad also offers a valuable chance to travel to many places. I’ve heard from many friends who’ve had the opportunity to study abroad that they spent a lot of time during their semester abroad traveling around Europe.
Personally, I’ve decided to study abroad at King’s College for this upcoming fall semester. I’m excited to get to live in London for a whole semester and study economics from a global and sociopolitical perspective. I’ve always wanted to spend time in London, so I’m excited about the opportunity to immerse myself in local culture. The process for applying to King’s College started in my sophomore fall semester as I had to declare my economics major in order to qualify to study abroad and earn economics credits.
Along with studying abroad comes responsibility. As I prepare to study abroad, I’m in the process of figuring out housing abroad, where to store my belongings at Amherst, and how to communicate with the commitments I have on campus that I won’t be here during fall semester. Thankfully, most of the clubs I’m a part of and the jobs that I work are very understanding about my decision to study abroad and will let me know they would be more than happy to welcome me back in the spring when I return. Another tough part about studying abroad is that I’ll miss my friends who are on campus. A lot of my friends on campus have a lot of major requirements that they need to fulfill, so they’re unable to study abroad. Though I won’t see them for nearly half a year, I’m determined to find ways to stay in contact with them while also prioritizing making new friendships. Especially since Amherst is a small school, studying abroad is a great way for people to meet new friends, and I’m excited about what opportunities await me in the United Kingdom.