A GLOBAL EXPERIENCE FOR EVERY STUDENT
NOTRE DAME INTERNATIONAL
Investment: $500,000
Having the opportunity to study abroad during college is a formative and incomparably life-changing experience for many students at the University of Notre Dame, where study abroad participation rates among undergraduates consistently exceed 70%. However, due to financial, social, health, or curricular barriers, not all Notre Dame students have equal access to the wide range of study abroad opportunities offered by the University.
This photo was taken during the inauguration of Italian President Sergio Mattarella, beginning his second seven-year term. An Italian acrobatic flight team performed after he was sworn into office, leaving behind the red, white, and green colors of the Italian flag seen in the photo.
Lindsey Reina, Rome Undergraduate Program
ND student climbing a volcano on an excursion lead by indigenous peoples.
Meredith Stump, Santiago Summer
Alyson Chin smiles in wonder at a small crustracean she found while at Constitución beach near the city of Talca in Chile. Taken to the area by her host family from Curepto, Aly was able to explore the beach area, and learn that it is a small portion of the land that the indigenous Mapuche people call their home. The beach also used to serve as a famous port for shipping merchandise. Encounterting an animal native to the Chilean ocean face to face was a special bonus from the trip!
Sydney Brown, Santiago
The financial support to fund summer study abroad scholarships is central to ensuring that more Notre Dame students can have this transformative experience.
Providing financial aid for summer global experiences, which include study abroad programs, internships, and independent research, helps to remedy the international experience gap within the Notre Dame student body. Notre Dame International has a proven track record of creating and supporting study abroad opportunities for global professional experiences and research that this program will build upon.
"While I studied abroad in Santiago, Chile, I learned a lot about the country’s rich culture and the Spanish language while being able to visit a variety of places inside and outside of Chile. This experience assisted me in being able to completely immerse myself into a country that I was not familiar with by taking classes at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and by having the wonderful opportunity of living with a host family. After my study abroad experience, I have been a big advocate for studying abroad by recommending any student to consider studying abroad because of the way that it provides one with a new perspective on how life outside the United States is and it also provides one with the opportunity to recognize the beauty of a new country. My study abroad experience in Chile would not have been made possible without the generous assistance of Notre Dame scholarships, and it will be an experience that I will always cherish deeply."
Gilbert Velez Ramirez ‘26
Majors: Finance and Spanish
"Studying abroad through the Global Professional Experience program allowed me to gain global work experience while fostering a sense of cultural immersion in one of the most beloved cities in the world. During my time in Rome, I interned in the Historical Archives of the Pontifical Gregorian University as a transcriber. I developed a sense of gratitude for language as I developed my knowledg e of Latin and Italian by working with ancient archives. I never thought that this was something that I would be able to do and the GPE program made it possible for me to explore my academic interests by exposing me to such a rich learning environment. Studying abroad in Rome is an experience that I will carry with me for the rest of my life."
Paige Jenkins ‘25
Majors: American Studies and English