To an Aggie considering going abroad and scared of not going with people you know, take the leap of faith! When signing up for this trip, I didn’t know anyone. I was nervous how I would be able to make friends with others, but I ended up forming some of the most pure friendships. My biggest advice is to put yourself out there with the other Aggie’s in the group! It can get easy to find one or two people and begin to isolate, but my best memories were made when we got into big groups to travel or just hang out. The beauty of this trip too is that there are so many people! It was easy and fun for me to find a new crowd during this trip.
Everyone’s study abroad experience is ultimately unique to them though. It became very evident on this trip that you get out of it what you put into it. I put minimal study efforts in and scraped by with a low A in my class. Had I given more time to studying and reviewing material, I could’ve definitely sailed by with a higher A. Spending time out on the weekends and exploring the different parts of Italy was more important to me though. The best part is, that’s totally okay! Even among our smaller group of students it was evident we all had different priorities and ways of ranking them. While in Italy, I was able to visit 12 different cities; some on day trips and some overnight trips. This too is unique to the traveler though. Some of my peers went to entirely different countries, more cities, or less cities. The free time here is entirely customizable to you! There were several long days on the trip, but these became some of my fondest memories. My study abroad through CIBS was the best decision I have made at A&M, and will likely continue to remain my best decision.
