RAV67's blog

Alex's Abroad Experience: Pitt Day of Giving

Hi, everyone! My name is Alex and I studied abroad with the Pitt in London program in the summer of 2022. Pitt in London is one of our university’s Panther Programs, which are programs designed by the Global Experiences staff along with faculty, that are comprised primarily of Pitt students. As an English Literature and Writing double major, I found that the Pitt in London program was a straightforward way to take the classes I was interested in and earn Pitt credit for them!

Abroad is What You Make It

My biggest piece of advice when studying abroad with DIS is to take courses that spark your interest, not just courses that are relevant to your future career or plan of study at Pitt. I am a major proponent of exploring new areas while abroad. You are immersing yourself in an entirely different culture, so you might as well immerse yourself in an entirely new field if it interests you! DIS is unique in the sense that they let you mix-and-match each course you take, and each course does not have to be part of a certain “major” like many other programs require.

Professional Development in LA

Today is my last day on the Pitt in LA program, and what an adventure it has been! The Pitt in LA program has truly been a transformative experience for me, both personally and professionally. 
 
Through this program, I’ve had the opportunity to visit the offices of Lionsgate and Warner Music Group to hear insight from industry professionals. We’ve also had a variety of guest speakers that are Pitt Alumni, ranging from Anomaly Pictures’ Adam Fasullo to Warner Records’ Mike Claricurzio and so many more. 
 

Americans through Outsider's Lense

Being an American abroad has indeed been an interesting experience for me. One of the most distinct things that I have noticed is that being removed from my own culture has made me aware of the many cultural elements that I take for granted. While it is a popular joke that Americans ‘have no culture,’ being in France has made me realize that we do. It is in the differences between French and American life that I have begun to identify elements of my home culture. For example, while Americans often smile while passing one another on the street, the French never do.

Lakota Perspectives Testimony: Jake Vasilias

On our trip to Pine Ridge, the overarching lesson I learned was that land gives and sustains life. While in South Dakota, I saw that the Lakota have a relationship to land that acknowledges this.
Growing up, I did not have that experience or relationship to land; land was pretty—mountains, lakes, oceans— but I didn’t understand the feeling that Lakota people have historically had about the land or that we should understand land as a source of sustenance.  The trip really opened my eyes to this.

How My Goals Have Changed

As a rising senior in the Pitt Nursing program planning on a minor in Spanish language, my academic and career goals (I thought) were pretty set in stone. However, after my experience abroad, these goals have changed ever so slightly. Upon nearing the end of my study abroad experience, I got pretty sick and decided to use my resources and visit the local hospital to see if they could give me anything to relieve my symptoms.

Tips and Tricks Before You Go

Despite having visited the country prior to my study abroad experience, there were still many things that surprised me about my global adventure. The weeks leading up to my departure, I was very anxious as I would be traveling alone for the first time without any friends or people that I knew of. I did not meet many people during any of the orientation days, which in hindsight would have definitely eased my nerves a little. However, a few of the girls from my program made a group chat through GroupMe.

My Home in Alcalá

As a participant of the Pitt in Spain Study Abroad Program, I have been selected to stay in the dorms at La Universidad de Alcalá in the city of Alcalá de Henares. Before arriving, I wasn’t sure what to think of the smaller city located on the outskirts of Madrid, however upon arrival I could see that it was filled with plenty of history and culture. This was especially apparent after taking a tour of the city with the rest of the students in the program and learning all about the historical monuments in the area.

Germany Perspective Changed my Perspective

Since my first year here at Pitt, I knew that I wanted to study abroad, preferably in Germany. I wanted to do this because I had considered living and working in Germany after graduating from college and perhaps even going to graduate school here. Because of these professional and personal goals, I continued studying German at Pitt and even researched companies in Germany that I could possibly work at in the future. When I arrived at Pitt my freshmen year, my advisor told me about the International Internship Program and one of the locations was Berlin.