Mayuri is a third-year student at Penn State University Park majoring in Psychology and minoring in Diversity Studies. During summer 2024, Mayuri studied abroad in Rome, Italy through the IES: Rome Internship program.
Continue reading to learn more about Mayuri's highlights of her time in Rome in her own words, why she chose her program, the lessons she took away, how studying abroad was formative to her future, and her advice for students interested in studying abroad!
Mayuri outside of the Vatican in Vatican City.
The Tuscany landscape.
Mayuri in Capri.
Taken while on a water taxi ride across the Amalfi Coast.
"I interned at the Modigliani Foundation based in Rome which is a non-profit art gallery, took Introductory Italian and an Internship Seminar class. I was able to meet so many students from different universities and hear about their internship experiences and loved being able to travel on the weekends.
I chose to spend the summer abroad in Rome because I have always wanted to go to Italy. The location of Rome was great because I was able to travel easily within Italy and the EU. When looking at my options, I wanted to be able to have an internship but also study abroad and earn credit IES allowed for this to happen. Rome also had many unique internship experiences that I could choose from that I would not be able to take advantage of in other places.
I was surprised how easy some steps of the application process was, how available funding was, and how fast time went when I was there!
By working in my placement, I was able to experience working in a global non-profit environment. I have always been interested in working with artists or in an industry that was creatively based. It is always scary to put yourself out there and do something unfamiliar, but it will make the experience that much more fun and fulfilling."