Studying abroad is something you may hear people talk about a lot, but what really is it? How does it work?
There are two different types of studying abroad experiences. The first is a full semester experience where a student becomes a full-time student in a foreign country. These take place in either the fall or spring semester and last around 13-16 weeks. The second is a shorter, three-week experience in the summer. Destinations rotate each summer and are faculty led. This is perfect for students with rigorous majors who do not have the time to be gone an entire semester.
There are both domestic and international locations available to study abroad. Some of the locations include Nashville, Washington D.C., London, Italy, Spain, New Zealand, the Netherlands and many more.
In the last three semesters, six students have gone on the Romania semester. This study abroad location comes straight through Northwestern, so students are still able to receive their full financial aid. One of the students who went on this trip in the fall of 2023 is Isaac Zwiers. When asked about his experience he said, “I would not say it was a life changing event, but I would say that it was a wonderful opportunity to reaffirm some thoughts that I had and challenge others.” Zwiers said “It was good practice at integrating oneself into a culture that is not your own and being the ‘other’ for a change. So often we are always on the ‘in-crowd’ whether we want to be or not, and it is very hard to think of yourself as being on the in-crowd when you are unable to communicate with anyone.”
When talking to staff in the study abroad department, Kendall Stanislav reaffirmed this by saying, “I think it also shines a light on ourselves. We can walk away making some personal changes and realizing some things about ourselves that we do not always see in our normal routine. When we get in a new setting a mirror is held up and we see ourselves a little differently”
To add to that, Caylan DeLucia from the Compass Center said, “A study abroad allows people to gain a much broader perspective of the world, of who God is, of who His people are and it is amazing what getting out of your routine and comfort zone do for you holistically as a human being.” Students are able to experience diversity that they would no be able to experience by staying in Orange City, IA.
It is also important to note that while studying abroad is fun, it does not simply have to be “this bonus extra thing that I will do if I have time.” Students learn so much while studying abroad that enables them to move towards graduation. There are many opportunities for classes, both major and core related. By studying abroad, students will earn their cross-cultural credit, and some locations may also fulfill the foreign language requirement. In summary, studying abroad is not just a “luxury semester” but rather a practical way to gain life experience.
While summer study abroad applications are closed for this summer, the upcoming deadline for the fall ’25 study abroad destinations is March 14. In order to study abroad, students must first submit an online application to NW, and then once approved they will apply to their desired program.
For anyone interested in studying abroad, talk to your advisor soon. The sooner you talk to them, the more likely it will fit into your schedule. It’s easier to add into a student’s schedule early on rather than mid-junior year when they still have a lot of required classes left. Stanislav and DeLucia also always love talking to students about individualized plans as well and would be happy to talk to anyone about studying abroad.
