Connector Contributor

I had seen the bold lettering many times before. I even, on a daily basis, strolled passed the elusive doors of this office.

I held a premature conviction that what lay beyond those very borders were ideas too unrealistic to entertain. In my heart, this mystical area was reserved for students whom I held the highest regard for—students whose aspirations reined higher than mine—so I thought.

One afternoon, however, I resolved to venture outside of the ordinary when again I beheld this uncertainty as I gazed with wonder at the words “Study Abroad,” which loomed over a part of O’Leary Library. With great trepidation, I entered the glass office with the expectation, and dare I say intention, of being rendered ineligible and beyond my limits.

My mind idled as I waited for the predetermined confirmation. However, the reality that soon unfolded was entirely contrary to what I had expected.

To my amazement, my dreams of embarking on a European adventure were deemed a sheer possibility. Such reveries of Europe, which had forever taken up residence in my soul as mere fiction, received a thick coat of possibility from the Study Abroad Office at UMass Lowell. I left the enchanting office with profound pleasure and a voracious appetite for international perspective.

My time in Barcelona was filled with everlasting joy. For three months I worked as an English professor for a nonprofit organization. It was a novel and enriching experience. I gained so much insight into the world of teaching. It was rewarding but challenging at times, and I’ll be the first to admit it isn’t as easy as it looks.

My students were mostly adults, ranging from 24 to 68 years of age. My life revolved around my students and my classes. It was a never-ending commitment that carried into my nights and weekends, though I relished every second of it. To top it all off, I had the privilege of coming home every day to two wonderful German girls who were my international roommates.

Through my internship abroad, I grew as a person, student and professional. I had the privilege of visiting Paris, London and Germany and now have friends scattered all over the globe that I keep in touch with on Facebook.

I gained limitless perspective of a world I had only experienced in movies. Before going abroad, I was a person who never saw the value in traveling, but now I’m the biggest advocate for the study/internship abroad experience.

If you’re on the fence about going abroad, I challenge you to take that next big step in your life. You’ll never regret it. As the saying goes, “Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.”