Psychology majors at Maryland choose to study abroad in many locations around the world! Depending on the program, they can sometimes be approved to take psychology courses abroad which transfer back to their psychology major requirements at Maryland. We checked in with four PSYC majors who studied abroad last year, to ask them about their abroad experience!
Gabrielle Espinosa studied abroad last spring through the
Maryland-in-Copenhagen program, at the
Danish Institute for Study Abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark. She fell in love with the city's beauty and developed the confidence to try new things and immerse herself into the Danish culture. She lived in a Danish Residential Community (DRC) with other American students and together they shared unforgettable experiences, such as watching the Queen ride down the streets in her royal carriage on her 75th birthday. She traveled with new friends to nine different countries and gained more cultural knowledge and independence than she could have ever hoped for. DIS has an impressive course catalog and she took three PSYC courses including positive psychology, psychology of human sexuality, and psychology of leadership. In addition, she also took Danish language and culture, which enhanced her interactions with Danes and contributed to her overall abroad experience! Her favorite day in Copenhagen was the Danish holiday, May Day, which is a huge outdoor festival full of live music and political speeches.
Daniel Stevenson studied abroad last fall through an exchange program at the
University of
Amsterdam. His psychology classes included ‘Human Cooperation’, ‘Motivation & Cognition’, and ‘Cultural Psychology’; however, his favorite class was ‘Putin’s Russia’. The student housing was apartment-style, with many international students living close together, and Daniel had great access to the city. He and his fellow students organized trips throughout Germany and to Barcelona, Spain. Being on exchange rather than studying within a program granted them the freedom to lose themselves within the Dutch culture, but there wasn’t a time in which he ever felt lost. An amazing way to meet people was through the International Student Network (ISN) - a student-run organization that puts together day events, club nights, and trips far and near. Daniel attended a ‘Discover Holland’ weekend with them that took his group up to the Dutch city of Groningen, and the island of Schiermonnikoog. Amsterdam has so much to offer, from music festivals to world-class museums and canals; Daniel says, “You have to see it for yourself!”
Laura Hipple studied abroad last spring through the
Maryland-in-Sevilla program, in Sevilla, Spain!
Laura lived with a host family there, but was able to travel to Córdoba, Granada, San Roque, and Madrid where her group visited historical sites, museums, mosques, synagogues, and cathedrals. In addition to these cultural excursions, a couple her favorite culture experiences in Spain were being able to walk down on the floor of the bull fighting ring in Sevilla and having the opportunity to eat some of the most delicious meals of her life both with the UMD group and with her host family. Academically she was able to take a psychology course focusing on the acquisition of a second language (PSYC442) which was fascinating to be able to take in her second language while being immersed in both the language and culture of Spain. In addition, she took courses on the history and culture of Sevilla, grammar, speaking, Spanish culture, and the historical interactions of Christians, Muslims, and Jews in Spain. Overall, it was an amazing experience in a beautiful city!
Elyse Frank studied abroad last spring through the
Maryland-in-Rome program, at the American University of Rome in Rome, Italy! She enjoyed the best paninis at the deli right next to campus! She was able to take Industrial/Organizational Psychology (PSYC361) while she was abroad. It was a
very interactive class and helped her to think about psychology issues from a different perspective. Her other courses included History of Modern Italian, Introductory Italian Language, and Art History of Rome. While she was in Rome, she lived in an apartment that was a 25-minute walk from school with 5 other females, where she shared a room with one of them. There was another Maryland student living with them, and the other young women were from 3 different American universities. Her favorite cultural experience was eating gelato in front of the Pantheon and realizing that she was living in a city with such rich history for 4 months. While abroad she was able to travel to a bunch of places. Within Italy she went to Venice, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terre, the Amalfi Coast (Sorrento, Positano, Pompeii and Capri), and Calvi Dell'Umbria. Outside of Italy, she visited Paris, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Munich, Barcelona, Prague, Berlin and London. She now has a list of even more countries and cities she wishes to visit!
If you are interested in learning more about the wide array of abroad program possibilities,
the Study Abroad Fair on campus is coming up SOON! It takes place on Thursday, September 10th from 3:00-7:00pm in the Grand Ballroom of the STAMP. See the event details here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1621341214804841/
