The Final Lap Before Winter Break
The final lap is sometimes the toughest. For the next week, while you finish up your exams, VCU Education Abroad is in the process of tying up all of our loose strings before the end of the semester.
On Monday, our group of about 25 students who are headed abroad in the spring gathered for the pre-departure orientation that took place in the Commons. For an hour and a half, we discussed culture shock, academics, travel, safety and health among other things. Not only are the students feeling more prepared for their upcoming study abroad, but they had the chance to meet fellow students who will be travelling to similar areas of the world.
On a sad note, three of our exchange students who have been here this semester are preparing to leave VCU to return home. We are anticipating about five new incoming exchange students in their place, however, so we have much to do to prepare for their impending arrival.
At the end of last week, we received a bit of exciting news: Emily Swinson, a VCU Fashion Merchandising major, is the winner of the Freeman-Asia scholarship for her upcoming semester in Japan! She will be studying abroad through CIEE in Tokyo and is the first VCU student to receive this prestigious, national scholarship. As you may recall, we also recently had a winner of the Gilman scholarship a couple of weeks ago. Way to go VCU!
'Tis the season for scholarship applications! If you would like to apply for either the VCU Education Abroad scholarship or the Robertson Scholarship (for study abroad in France), come by the office to grab an application. Also, if you want or need a scholarship but don't know where to turn, ask us! We'd be happy to help. There are many opportunities out there and you just have to sieze the chance to apply! In fact, now is the time to start thinking about applying for the Freeman-Asia and Gilman scholarships if you are planning to study abroad in the fall. If you would like to study Arabic, you can receive up to $8,000 for a semester program! The Gilman application will be open in February and due by April 3. The Freeman-Asia opens February 21 and the deadline is April 4. You can also apply for the Freeman-Asia award for summer study if your program is 8 weeks or longer.
A large number of our summer programs have been added to our website. Check out the programs in our newest locations: Amsterdam, London, Toronto, Romania and Scotland! Click here for our summer programs website!
Finally, those of you internet-savvy students out there will be happy to know that we have recently joined a popular networking site. Facebook us! We've got a profile and a group called "VCU Education Abroad". You can check there and here for all the latest news.