Caleb Mowery

Caleb's Education Abroad Experience

One of my most memorable moments I had abroad was when we were taken on a field trip after class one day to Gyeongbokgung Palace. At the palace, you had to pay admission if you were wearing regular clothes. If you were wearing a hanbok, however, which is very traditional Korean clothing, you were admitted for free. So, the university rented hanboks for all of us to wear to the palace, and we were able to get some incredible photos and have a really awesome, very unique cultural experience. It was very fun because many of us felt very out of place, but all the locals kept saying we looked great and that they were so happy we were able to visit their country. This was one of the earliest things we did as a part of the program, and because we made a day of it, spending the rest of the time exploring the city, I made lots of great friends, and really got to know my new environment. This made Seoul feel like home for the rest of the trip, and I had the most fun and some of the best experiences I have had in my entire life in the following weeks of the trip. 

It was kind of funny. I actually applied first to an abroad program in Como, Italy, but was not accepted. After learning this, I had to decide on a new venture to apply to in just 24 hours, and picked Seoul. I had heard that it was a very nice, clean city with lots of incredible things to see and cool culture. For the most part though, I was going into this trip completely blind. Also, I was the only student from Penn State Main Campus on this venture. This was very intimidating to me as I started booking flights and more information came out about the trip. After completing it though, having a fresh start while abroad forced me to explore my environment and really build connections with the people I met. This caused me to get the absolute most out of my trip abroad, and it really changed my life as a result.

I was surprised at how many people spoke English. Obviously the national language in South Korea is Korean, but most students, teachers, and workers spoke at least a little bit of English. This made getting around fairly easy, and sparked a lot of really cool interactions with locals that wanted to talk to Americans so that they could practice their English. I also got the chance to learn a little bit of Korean, because so many people could translate and teach me. Some of my friends that studied abroad in Europe and other Asian countries also had a similar experience, so I would recommend anyone looking to study abroad to not be afraid of a major language barrier. 

I learned to make the most of every single day. There were a lot of times in Seoul where I had a busy week or was tired of walking around and seeing things, but decided to go explore anyway. A lot of these days turned into some of the best experiences I had while abroad, and I laugh at the idea that I might have just stayed in bed or watched tv to "recharge" during them. It's important that you take advantage of your time abroad, and even your time at home as best as you can. Take all of the opportunities you can get and try to make the most of them, and your life will be very fulfilling. 

I think that my experience abroad taught me that I can truly be independent. I learned to make connections with people and get work done in an environment that started out being completely unfamiliar, and that motivated me to do the same thing in America, where I've lived all my life. This has led to me making new friends, joining new clubs and groups on campus, and having less social anxiety when approaching new people. I think that this is a very important skill to have if you have large professional goals, because you are in these situations a lot in the workplace. I also became comfortable with traveling such a far distance, which has been a goal of mine my whole life, as I want to continue to travel as I get older. 

My advice would be to take a leap of faith and just go. I only did a summer session, which was four weeks long. I ended up absolutely loving every minute of it, but even if I didn't, it was short enough that I could have managed it. There are so many opportunities for trips like these in college, especially at Penn State, that you will never have for the rest of your life. So even if you are apprehensive or think that one, or many things could go wrong if you go abroad, I assure you it will be well worth it. And most of those things will absolutely work themselves out."