Education abroad goes by quickly. And when I say that, I mean it. It seems like a summer, full semester, or even a year abroad would last a lifetime, but your experience will go by like a flash. I’m still shocked that my semester abroad was already a year ago! It was such an amazing experience that went by in the blink of an eye. But, as they say, all good things must come to an end. So I think we ought to talk a bit about my experiences in my final weeks in Japan as well as

Hey guys!! I’m three weeks into coming to Japan and my class is starting tomorrow. I’m super excited to start my classes and meet my classmates but before that I wanted to share the best eats I had in Tokyo so far! One of my goals of studying abroad is to find hidden gems all around Japan! And for three weeks I have been going wandering around to find the best foods around Tokyo. First thing you have to try after coming is to go to any rotating sushi restaurant. If you have e

Hi everyone! I have officially been in Japan for three weeks now, and what a time it has been. The first two days after I arrived, I stayed with my friend and her family. It was great seeing familiar faces in such a new environment. I was practically running on adrenaline those first couple of days, and once they dropped me off at my dorm, everything really set in. The best way to describe it is like when your parents drop you off at college freshman year—everything feels new

Living abroad. We’ve talked a lot about the adventures, the school, the people, but a massive part of the experience is just living in a different country! Your bathroom might be in a different layout, you may not be able to find the foods you’re used to in stores, or you may not even be able to find clothes that fit you! (Such was my case… I’m too tall for Japan!) But no matter what roadblocks you must face, living abroad is a crucial and, honestly, quite exciting part of st

Hey guys! Welcome to my very late Pre-departure blog post. My name is Temmi and I am a junior majoring in Accounting and International Business with a minor in Japanese. Starting from this mid April, I will be studying at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan!! The spring/summer semester in Japan doesn't start till April so It was a perfect opportunity to complete a busy season Accounting Internship from January to March in Chicago. After all this busy season work, I am very exci

I’ve been talking a whole lot about the trips and such of my time in Japan. I don’t want to say it isn’t all fun and games, but half of the title of “study abroad” is “study” , so, let’s talk about it! Broadly, classes abroad are structured quite similarly to how classes work here in the US. Yet, I have no doubt that you might find yourself with more free time to travel, enjoy your time in your host country, and do fun things! For me, Japan was an interesting change of pace,

If there’s one piece of advice I have to give to students wanting to go abroad, it has to be do not get sick. Obviously, this is a bit inevitable. However, taking care of yourself abroad is so important and so easily forgotten about! I was extremely excited to go to Germany this past weekend for a music festival. The plane tickets and trains were booked. Of course, I ended up getting really sick and having to go to the hospital. Traveling every weekend and doing activities on

Bonjour toute le monde! A couple weeks ago it was spring break for my best friend who goes to school in Florida, so she decided to come and visit. It was her first time in France, let alone Europe in general. Which means that this had to be a good week. Her arrival day was very packed. We started at a mall near the Notre Dame, then walked across the Seine to the Shakespeare & Co bookshop, got a crepe next door, and continued walking towards the Luxembourg garden (sadly we got

Hi everyone! My name is Madelyn, and I am a junior International Business and Marketing major with a minor in Japanese. This semester, I’ll be studying abroad at Keio University in Tokyo, Japan. My semester doesn’t start until the beginning of April, so I’ve actually been on break since December! While it’s definitely been nice to have some extra time to relax, I am so excited to finally go abroad. A bunch of my friends are also studying in Japan this semester, which makes it

Being back in the great old US of A was awesome, but damn, it was expensive compared to Egypt. I got to see just about everyone I was hoping to see in the month I was back, and share my experiences, but also listen and hear about their summers, which I think is important for people to remember when they study abroad. Although your summer or semester may have been life-changing, make sure to listen to what has been going on in your friends’ and families’ lives and don’t just d

With one week to go in my summer program, three of my friends and I rented a car and headed up to the North Coast along the Mediterranean. Known for its teal-colored water and white sandy beaches, the beach itself lived up to the hype. Beautiful beaches of the north coast However, our Airbnb had no Wi-Fi, no AC, and only one working shower (or more accurately, one working hose). That, combined with our rental car, which, after passing a pack or two of wild camels, decided to

When you see your friends on Instagram while studying abroad, you may see them in a different country at a different club every weekend. And while that does look like one hell of a time, I am almost a little happy that being in the Middle East I am not afforded that luxury. This past summer however, I did take one trip abroad with my previously mentioned group of friends, where we went to Istanbul, Turkey. This had been at the top of my bucket list for places to visit for yea

My first few hours in Egypt were quite hectic, I must say. My bus driver, who was assigned to me by the university I was studying at, dropped me, along with my two duffel bags, off on campus. But I soon realized my dorm was not on campus. After getting an Uber (man, Ubers are so cheap in Egypt, it’s amazing) and reading off the extremely unclear address that I was provided, my new friend and I were driving around for, I kid you not, an hour trying to find my accommodations. M

Where should I even start? Through the International Business Middle East and North Africa (IBMENA) cohort in the Darla Moore School of Business, I have been abroad for nine of the past 10 months. Pretty crazy. My name is Josh Pasternak, a current junior studying International Business and Finance with a minor in Arabic, hailing from “the ville” Rockville, Maryland. If we rewind the clock a little bit to May of 2025, I was getting ready for my first of three stints abroad, th

Everyone has their comfort food at home, and new foods and especially new eating habits in Barcelona are real adjustments. From sobremesa, the tradition of prolonged chatting after meals, to late dinner times, I had to find good places to eat that aligned with my schedule. People in Barcelona tend to start eating dinner around 9PM. Going out to dinner around this time is great and relaxing, but many people also have early classes that they need sleep for too. Finding the bala

Last week, we scratched the surface of what is in store for you in the hot spring city of Japan: Beppu! From the Jigoku Beppu to the various hot springs available, there are countless things to do, but still, as I said, we only scratched the surface. Let’s dig a bit deeper shall we? Beppu has a very storied history and that is directly conveyed in the fact that much of the architecture and infrastructure is very old and well-maintained. Many of the bathhouses and onsens are h

One of the most valuable competencies I developed over three months studying abroad is resilience. Before this experience, I was extremely hard on myself whenever I made a mistake. I let failure define me. Studying abroad forced me to confront—and rewrite—that mindset. From the start, it wasn’t smooth sailing. On the plane ride to Barcelona, I was already feeling sick. I later discovered this was due to a deviated septum. While in Spain, I got sick multiple times. I went to t

Where in the world would the cast of Bridgerton study abroad? Dearest readers, It is with great pleasure (and just a touch of scandal) that we present the latest installment of our “Where Would They Go?” series. This time, we turn our attention to the ton’s most dramatic, ambitious, and romantically inclined residents: the cast of Bridgerton . Should Anthony trade duty for diplomacy in Singapore? Would Penelope pen her anonymous dispatches from a café in Seoul? And might Coli

Bonjour toute le monde! Okay so this past week was Paris Fashion Week! And while I don't live in Paris, I live 40 minutes away by train and so I can easily visit whenever I want. So, this past week one of my friends from my hometown came and visited me over her spring break, which called for multiple trips into the city for tourist things. One day we planned to see a lot of the main tourist things in the first couple arrondissements. So, we started at the Arc de Triomphe, mad

The different bins, the shared transportation, and the grocery bag policy are all things I adore about Spain’s sustainability practices. It was inspiring to be in a country that cares deeply for the earth. Bins On my first day in Barcelona, CIS Abroad coordinators brought us all together for a meeting and outlined the differences in American and Spanish cultures. One that stuck with me was Spain’s focus on sustainability. Whether you're picnicking on la playa, uncorking cava