Education Abroad Expo

On September 4th I attended the Education Abroad Expo in the Ohio Union put on by the Office of International Affairs as an academic event. The expo opened my eyes to the multitude of opportunities there are to study abroad during my time at Ohio State. Prior to this, I knew that I wanted to study abroad since I have many family members and friends who have done so and had great experiences. However, I was unsure about how I would schedule my classes in order to be able to study abroad and still graduate on time. After attending the expo, I feel confident that I will be able to schedule my classes in a way that I will be able to study abroad for a semester. I was also nervous about being able to afford the expense of studying abroad, but I am less anxious about that now that I have heard about the many opportunities for scholarships and grants.

Regardless of where I study abroad, I am hoping to gain a greater understanding of the culture and to broaden my knowledge of the world from the experience. I joined the International Affairs Scholars Program because of my love for traveling and meeting people whose backgrounds differ from mine, so I want to utilize the opportunities I have to travel as much as I can while I am in college. I would preferably like to be abroad for a semester in Europe so that I could take weekend trips to other countries. At the moment, as I am only seven weeks into college, being away from my family and friends for an entire semester seems impossible, however, I know that challenge will be worthwhile to be able to make the most of my time abroad. Because I have taken Spanish since I was in the first grade, I would love to be able to use that knowledge to talk to native speakers no matter where I decide to study.

While I would prefer to study abroad for a semester, I was also introduced to study abroad sessions during the month of May that interest me. For instance, the School of Environment and Natural Resources offers a four week study abroad course in New Zealand to learn about their sustainable tourism and how people are effecting the environment. Not only did the pictures from the trip look breathtaking, but the upperclassman I talked to who had gone on the trip this past summer raved about her time there. This student is a business major and particularly enjoyed having the opportunity to talk to entrepreneurs in New Zealand and learning about how they are making their businesses environmentally friendly. This stood out to me because I assumed students from the School of Environment and Natural Resources would make up the entirety of the students on the trip, so the fact that people from many different majors attended her trip over the summer greatly interests me as another way to meet new people.

Year in Review

[ “Year in Review”  is where you should reflect on the past year and show how you have evolved as a person and as a student.  You may want to focus on your growth in a particular area (as a leader, scholar, researcher, etc.) or you may want to talk about your overall experience over the past year.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

G.O.A.L.S.

[ “G.O.A.L.S.” is a place where students write about how their planned, current, and future activities may fit into the Honors & Scholars G.O.A.L.S.: Global Awareness, Original Inquiry, Academic Enrichment, Leadership Development, and Service Engagement. For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.

  • Global Awareness: Students cultivate and develop their appreciation for diversity and each individual’s unique differences. For example, consider course work, study abroad, involvement in cultural organizations or activities, etc.
  • Original Inquiry: Honors & Scholars students understand the research process by engaging in experiences ranging from in-class scholarly endeavors to creative inquiry projects to independent experiences with top researchers across campus and in the global community. For example, consider research, creative productions or performances, advanced course work, etc.
  • Academic Enrichment: Honors & Scholars students pursue academic excellence through rigorous curricular experiences beyond the university norm both in and out of the classroom.
  • Leadership Development: Honors & Scholars students develop leadership skills that can be demonstrated in the classroom, in the community, in their co-curricular activities, and in their future roles in society.
  • Service Engagement: Honors & Scholars students commit to service to the community.]

Career

[“Career” is where you can collect information about your experiences and skills that will apply to your future career.  Like your resume, this is information that will evolve over time and should be continually updated.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

Artifacts

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation includes both a description of the artifact and a reflection on why it is important to you, what you learned, and what it means for your next steps.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

About Me

[Your “About Me” is a brief biographical statement that might include your intended major, your academic interests, your goals, as well as the things that make you unique.  Definitely include a picture! Also, remember that you can always update this post at any point. For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]