The Life-Changing Benefits of a Fall Study Abroad Experience
As part its academic strategic plan, “Leading With Distinction,” the University is committed to removing barriers and creating opportunities so that all undergraduates can study abroad or away before they graduate.
More than 50% of students explore the world through a Syracuse Abroad center, says Nicole Collins, director of strategic partnerships and outreach with Syracuse Abroad. With over 100 study abroad programs in 60 locations around the world, there’s a unique opportunity for every student.
While the spring has traditionally been when the majority of students study abroad, Collins says there’s been a shift toward the fall semester in recent years. Among the reasons why Collins says students should consider studying abroad in the fall:
- More likely to get into the program and secure the housing type you want.
- More scholarships and grants available, including $2,000 per student grants for Central Europe and Santiago, Chile.
- Special fall-only programs and events, including Oktoberfest and Christmas markets.
- Experiment with locations that aren’t easy to visit later in life.
- Unique cultural opportunities for food lovers who study in Florence, Italy, including truffle hunting, chestnut harvests and festivals, olive oil harvesting and tasting, grape harvesting, and more.
- Easier for parents and family members to visit.
“Our students are realizing the amazing opportunities available in the fall,” Collins says. “We have great need-based and merit-based scholarship opportunities available for students in the fall, plus there’s less demand.”
On this episode of the “’Cuse Conversations” podcast, Collins and Sophia Moore ’25, who enjoyed a life-changing Syracuse Abroad experience in the Fall 2023 semester, discuss the many benefits of studying abroad in the fall. A transcript [PDF] is also available
Thinking of studying abroad in the fall? The application deadline is March 15.
The below Q&A spotlights how, through their semesters abroad, students Moore and Anna Meehan ’26 underwent transformative experiences by immersing themselves in a new country.
Academic majors: Television, radio and film (S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications); sociology (Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs).
Semester Abroad: Fall 2023 at the Santiago Center in Santiago, Chile.
Why was Santiago the destination for you? I figured that I would have an opportunity at some point in my life to be able to travel to Europe, but to travel to South America, that was a rare opportunity. And I really wanted the chance to immerse myself in a culture that I was completely unfamiliar with in a country that I was completely unfamiliar with, with the safety net of doing it through Syracuse Abroad.
What role did your host family play to help you get acclimated? My host family encouraged me to go out and do everything that Santiago had to offer. Every day, my host mom would check in and offer up a couple of places to check out. She was always pushing me to get out of the house and go explore the city because it’s important to take advantage of every moment. I wouldn’t have had access to that kind of cultural ambassadorship to Chile if I wasn’t living with a host family.
How close did you become with your peers in the Santiago program? We lived something so life-changing together, experienced so much culture and were exposed to this lifestyle that’s so different from the U.S. In five months, we all became very close, and that’s something that just is a bond for life.
What did you learn about yourself from your time studying abroad? Studying abroad somewhere where the language spoken is not my first language was a real challenge. Every day, I would wake up and push myself to just do a little bit more, speak in Spanish a little longer, think a little harder and get myself a little more comfortable with the language and with the space. But as time went on, just coaxing myself into doing a little bit more showed me that I have a level of resilience that I wasn’t aware of before I went abroad.