A majority of students at AU take the opportunity to study abroad for a year, a semester or a summer. I am often disappointed, however, when I hear some of the excuses people give for not taking this fantastic opportunity.
Common excuses I hear include, “My boyfriend is graduating this year and I don’t want to miss his graduation!” or, “I want to be president of my fraternity!”
Any other excuses for not studying abroad are, in my mind, completely ridiculous. I can say this with confidence because I, too, used to make some of those excuses. It wasn’t until the summer of my junior year that I realized I’d be making a mistake if I didn’t take the leap and spend a semester abroad.
My excuse before had been, “I don’t do well transitioning into new settings,” based on my transition to AU.
I would soon realize that my reasoning couldn’t have been more wrong. A new place was exactly what I needed, and that new place was Copenhagen, Denmark.
Now that I’m leaving this beautiful place, I’ve compiled an assortment of quotes and reflections that sum up what I’ve learned in my abroad experience thus far. These reflections have been the result of my past three months in Copenhagen and travelling around the EU.
“Travel is the only thing you can buy that makes you richer.” – Unknown
Although I am currently feeling the consequences of having spent too many Euros, Pounds and Danish Kronner, I wholeheartedly agree with this statement. About a week ago, I got back to Copenhagen from trips to London and Berlin, and although I had never felt more poor, tired and stuffed with carbs in my 21 years of living, I had also never appreciated life as much as I did at that moment.
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsh
In every pre-departure meeting and at every abroad orientation, you will hear the phrase “life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Although this overused statement sounds like some kind of ploy to get reluctant American students to immerse themselves into a foreign culture, these nine words couldn’t be more accurate. I left my comfort zone on Jan. 18, 2014 when I took a flight to Copenhagen. At the time it was freezing cold and dark. I didn’t see the sun for the first three weeks that I was here, yet I suddenly felt a new sense of freedom.
I’m not sure what it is about being away from the United States and AU, but suddenly my perspective on life completely changed, and I am more content than ever. I am quite positive that these new feelings have something to do with being away from my “comfort zone” in the AU bubble. When I left that bubble, I started living life differently. I realized how much of life lies beyond the Bender Library, Hill internships and Greek life. I believe that much of this has to do with my immensely low levels of stress this semester (as compared to the stress and anxiety I face at AU). I finally have free time – a concept that was foreign to me except on breaks and vacations. I’m not constantly worrying about how much time I have until chapter starts or about the impossible amount of papers I have due in a week.
Having free time has allowed me to enjoy life in a way that I haven’t before. There are things I didn’t notice because I was too busy, stressed and often bent over my iPhone or MacBook. When was the last time you sat down to enjoy the weather? I’m sure that if you’re a typical AU student with a part time job, an internship and a multitude of extracurricular activities, it’s been a while. Yes, I’m sure you rush to the quad when it gets warmer out but only until your next group meeting or until you have to go back to the library to finish your paper. And the whole time you sit on the quad, you think about how you’re wasting time because you could currently be doing something more “productive.” And yes, I’m sure you indulge in the occasional weekend day-drink at your favorite fraternity house when the weather is nice, but how fulfilling is that? I’m talking about being outside to enjoy the sun and its warmth and the feeling that spring is on its way – without stressing about how many papers and tests you have. I also couldn’t remember the last time I sat somewhere for hours (a bakery, a restaurant or a cozy little cafe), talking with friends and not constantly checking the time or meticulously going over my to-do list in my head. Contrary to popular (American) belief, these activities are not lazy, but rather fulfilling and necessary to make life more enjoyable.
“I never let my education get in the way of my learning.” – Albert Einstein
I love learning, and I always have. But in a culture that prizes tests and grades over anything else, education’s priorities become skewed. We all know the feeling of a semester at AU: the stress, the pressure, the espresso shots you take in the Mudbox at 8 p.m. so that you can stay up all night, the impossible number of pages you have to read by next class, the despair you feel when you see that you only got a B . I didn’t know there was any other way to live. I thought it was normal to be exhausted but still too stressed about work to actually get a good night’s sleep.
I don’t miss drinking four cups of coffee per day to stay awake. I don’t miss always being in a hurry – to the point that the semester rushes by faster than you can run to your next class in Watkins.
Yes my classes here are “easier” than my classes at AU, but that doesn’t mean I’m learning any less. What’s the point of putting so much information into one course that the students have to cram and make themselves sick from stress? What’s the point of making a class so reading-heavy that the students grow to resent the class and hate the topic? Is that really learning? I’ve learned so much more from my abroad classes – and just through being abroad – than I ever learned at AU. The teachers are here to teach us, not to bombard us with tests, papers and assignments. Danish culture has less of a focus on grades and more of a focus on experiential learning, as well as an emphasis on equality. Thus, students are seen as equals to the teacher. We learn from one another and the teacher isn’t out to make the students’ lives miserable.
I rarely feel the familiar “I hate this class” feeling that I get at AU. I don’t find myself counting down the minutes until class is over. Instead, I find myself thinking, “Wow, this class is really interesting. I want to learn more about this.”
Sure, I find many of my classes at AU quite engaging, but the thoughts going through my head at AU are along the lines of “Okay, this is interesting, but what do we need to know for the test?”
I suppose living in Europe gives me many reasons to feel better than I ever have. Being away from D.C.‘s aggressive, dog-eat-dog culture is great, but I think most of my current contentment involves being away from the American higher education system in general with its focus on grades and the extreme competition that it creates between American college students. Traveling out of the United States and being out of your comfort zone helps you to remember that there’s more to life than what lies in our own individual bubble. Have the courage to break out of the bubble. You’ll be delighted with what you find.
Thank you to Victoria Langton and Sarah Peterson for inspiring me to take this leap.
Sonia Ledwith is a junior in the School of Public Affairs.
