About to go abroad!

I am about to head to my study abroad semester in Konstanz Germany! I am excited for this new chapter in my life and for all the experiences that I will have in this new place. This is the culmination of two years of planning, as I have known from my very first day at NAU that I wanted to study abroad. Even before that I had a strong desire to live abroad. In fact, I strongly considered going to school overseas. Unfortunately, at the time it was not fiscally possible. There simply is no better way to gain a new perspective that to have your views challenged, and what better way to do that than by interacting with people from a different culture? Study abroad also offers a once in a lifetime chance to travel the world. It will be challenging to travel as much as I would like, because I only have a limited amount of money. Luckily, I applied for and received several scholarships to help fund this trip. One scholarship was through the NAU foundation, and another two through the NAU Center for International Education. These scholarships, in combination with my existing tuition waive and what is left of the money I made during my last fire season, are truly what have enabled me to embark on this journey.

I chose Germany as the destination for my study abroad semester for several reasons. Firstly, I would like to improve my German language skills.Two years of High School German, and one year of college level German, have given me a basic knowledge of the language. I, however, want to take my skills to the next level. Living in Germany will greatly enhance this process. Secondly, my heritage is predominantly German and my family has many connections to this country. The majority of my ancestors hailed from Germany, but that was centuries ago. The last member of my family to have been born in a German speaking country (Switzerland) arrived in the early 1880s. Up to my grandpartents generation, however, German was still spoken as the home language. This is due, in large part, to the fact many of my family are, and were, German Mennonite. This particular community is well known for having retained a uniquely German-American culture. As a result, my family has also maintained a connection to this country, even after they left. My maternal great grandfather did PHD in Germany in the 1920s and my paternal grandfather was stationed in Germany while he was in the army in the early 1950s. In spite of the great chasm of time that separates these ancestors and myself, I have always felt drawn to visit the land where my ancestors came from. My family has also maintained a connection to this country, even after they left. My maternal great grandfather did his masters and PHD programs in Germany in the 1920s and my paternal grandfather was stationed in Germany while he was in the army in the early 1950s.

I am looking forward to meeting people not just from Germany, but from all over the world. The University of Konstanz is supposed to have a robust international program, not unlike NAU. This should give me a chance to befriend not just Germans, but people from all over. I am also looking forward to improving my German skills! I can not wait to apply all the years of studying to real world situations. What I am most excited about, however, is the chance to see places and peoples I have never seen before. I think that this will be an eye opening

experience.

I chose the University of Konstanz for three main reasons: classes in English, its excellent political science class, which shall help me finish of one of my minors, and for its intensive pre-semester-language program. Firstly, it offers a lot of classes in English. I am not yet confident enough in my German language skills to take classes in German (other than language learning courses obviously.) The University of Konstanz offers many classes in English, and in a variety of fields. Secondly, the University has a reputation for excellence in political science. I am hoping to finish of my minor in International Affairs this semester, which requires me to take a number of political science courses. Lastly, before the semester begins I will be part of a month long intensive language program. Given that language is one of the biggest reasons for choosing Germany as my destination, this will be quite beneficial. Plus, it gives me additional time in country!