Why everyone needs to study abroad

With the new administration in the White House, it’s clear that a lack of education about different cultures has become pervasive in the United States.  Studying abroad is one of the best ways to become familiar with a culture other than our own, and studying through NYU (14 abroad sites, anyone?) only makes it easier to spend a semester, a year, or even just a month living in a different country.  The benefits of studying abroad are countless: you can hone your language skills, connect with people you would otherwise never have met, and become immersed in a culture in a way that typical tourists can’t.

I spent my freshman year studying abroad in Paris, France, after being admitted to the Global Liberal Studies program.  Given the chance to pick between New York, Washington D.C., Florence, London, or Paris, the choice for me was a no-brainer.  Who wouldn’t want to spend a year wandering along the Seine with a bottle of wine and a hunk of cheese?  I flew to Paris in August, pretty sure I knew what was waiting for me, and flew back the next May, certain that I knew almost nothing.

The first night I was alone in my tiny apartment in the strange new world of France, I spent half an hour trying to figure out how to get a hot shower, concluded there was no hot water, cried on the floor, took a cold shower, and went to bed thoroughly disheartened at how my new life was starting.  As it turns out, there was hot water–I had just been turning the knob the wrong way, and, punch-drunk from jet lag, culture shock, and lack of sleep, hadn’t thought to turn it the other direction.

A couple months later, after I had managed to find my footing, Paris was attacked by terrorists, leaving all of us at NYU to wonder: how do you deal with this kind of crisis so far away from home?  The answer, for a small number, was to return to New York, while for most of us the answer was to fumble along together, trying to make sense of a senseless tragedy, feeling Paris band together as the world looked on.

Despite these crises–both minuscule and colossal–or perhaps because of them, I wouldn’t change anything about my experience even if I could.  I learned more about myself in one year in Paris than I did in eighteen years of living in the United States.  I discovered all my weaknesses (I really suck at dealing with myself when I’m sick) and my limits (I will not de-bone and behead an already-cooked fish just to eat it).

I also had amazing experiences that more than made up for the moments of sadness or homesickness.  I spent a week in Nice, a weekend in the Loire Valley, went champagne tasting in Champagne, ate Nutella waffles in Brussels–the list practically goes on forever, though my personal favorite moment is still sitting in Montmartre watching all the lights in Paris blink on as the sun set.

Studying abroad didn’t just teach me about Paris–it taught me a different way to think about the world.  It forced me out of my comfort zone time and time again.  When you’re in a tiny village in Italy, don’t speak Italian, and have strep throat, it makes you take a step back and truly appreciate the help you’re given.  And while I did wander the Seine with some wine and cheese, that wasn’t the main thing I took away from living in Paris.  It gave me a new perspective for looking at problems, and taught me that culture shock, while hard to deal with, makes it easier to put yourself into the shoes of immigrants coming to America.

If we as a country want to understand the world, we have to start by going to live in it.