Alana Kellen
kellenar@lopers.unk.edu

UNK has many opportunities for students to try something different and exciting. One program that stands out from the rest is the opportunity to study abroad. Every year the study abroad program organizes an informational fair, so students can learn more and discover where they could study abroad. 

Marlana Kent, a junior early childhood inclusive from Cambridge participated in the Australia summer study abroad program. This three-week program is new to UNK, so Kent was one of the first to ever study there and earn UNK credits. 

“I chose a summer program because I wanted to dip my toe in the water and see if I could handle one of the longer programs, because I’m really interested in going to Ireland,” Kent said. “I decided Australia because it was just beautiful, and I wanted to be one of the first to go on this Australia trip and experience it. I’m so happy I did.”

While studying abroad students are immersed into a whole new culture and lifestyle. Most programs require 12-15 credit hours taken in the selected country where students learn language, literature, history, and take a special topics class where they get to site see and learn hands on about the country’s history.

Students that have studied abroad like Kent are then asked by Ann Marie Park, UNK assistant director of International Partnerships and Study Abroad, when they return to be ambassadors for their program. Responsibilities include posting photos to the study abroad Instagram account, presenting an informative PowerPoint to a class or organization, and being an informative resource at the study abroad fair. There, students share their experiences with others that are interested and have questions. 

“One of my favorite experiences from the trip was the last week when we went island hopping, but I don’t know which island was my favorite because I loved them all,” Kent said. “We traveled to Lady Elliot Island which is the southernmost part of the Great Barrier Reef and there we went scuba diving and snorkeled on the Great Barrier Reef, so it was amazing.”

Students are able to make lifelong memories when studying abroad even if going for the shorter summer programs. Scholarships helped Kent make her dream come true of studying abroad and with scholarships and financial aid, other students are able to study abroad as well. 

The application is an easy process that can be found at http://www.unk.edu/international/study_abroad for students who are interested. Here an appointment can be made with a study abroad advisor to see when it would be possible for a student to study abroad and figure out what country they are most interested in. 

The two big programs the study abroad fair highlighted are the Czech Republic and Ireland programs since the priority deadline for the applications close on September 27th. After the deadline, the applications will be on a rolling basis, which means they will fill spots until the programs are full. 

“It’s an amazing experience and you will never regret it. Just do it,” Kent said. “It expands your world view, it helps people be more aware of people in their cultures, it helps them be an overall kinder and more generous person. It completely alters your world view.”