Results of Studying Abroad

It’s over. My 5 month trip to Australia is finished. I’m back at home in Pennsylvania reflecting on all the good memories. It’s weird to think that I’ve been gone for so long. The first day back at home seemed foreign, but the next day, was like any other day in the states. I jumped back into my regular routine of going to work and hanging out with my friends, although the jet lag killed me. It took 5 days to get back on my normal sleeping and eating schedule.

My highlights of the trip consist of:

• Making new friends
• Swimming at The Great Barrier Reef
• Sailing the Whitsunday’s
• Backpacking in Sydney
• Partying in the Gold Coast
• Backpacking New Zealand.

I had the best 5 months I could’ve asked for. I experienced some culture shock, but quickly overcame that. AND, I was forced to learn how to cook! I’m walking away from this experience with so many new skills and life lessons.

What I’m going to miss most about studying abroad is not having a routine schedule. In Australia, every week was different compared to my life at home. All it took was an invite, and I was out the door and doing something different, whether it was traveling, hiking, boating, playing rugby or going out to dinner. I sure will miss the Aussie life.

If you ever have a chance to study abroad, do it!

If I had to give advice to anyone studying abroad, I would have to say make sure you have skype and stay in contact with friends and family back at home. They are your support team, and without them, you’ll miss home even more. They’ll encourage you to live it up and help you succeed.

I believe this will be my last post for The Australian in ME. If you have any questions, please ask away and I’ll get back to you. If you’ve enjoyed reading about my adventures, please let me know. I’m looking forward to doing this all over again in a different country. Fingers crossed, I think I’m going to Europe next!

Why Did I Choose to Study in Australia?

I had 2 opportunities to choose from:  1) Short study tour  2) Full Semester Abroad

I chose to study abroad for a full semester instead of a study tour.  I wanted to take advantage of this amazing opportunity of combining my desire to explore new places while studying business and communication. Freshman year I realized by attending Queens University of Charlotte, I have the opportunity to follow my dream of leaving the United States to study abroad and to accomplish some of my goals.  I want to be well educated, culturally diverse, and successful.  I have looked into studying abroad in other locations, like Ireland and Hong Kong,  but felt the University of the Sunshine Coast had the most to offer.  After reading about the University, I liked how it resembled Queens in many ways:

1. There is personal attention from the professors
2.  Resources helping students do well in courses
3. Support in entrepreneurial ideas, like Queens’ McColl School of Business
4. Their Global Opportunities Program, which is USC’s study abroad program.

I chose Queens partially because of these reasons above and I wanted to study at another university that truly cared about me and wanted me to excel in life.

I chose Australia because it had always been a dream of mine to visit the land down under.  My available options helped in my decision process because I’ve already visited Europe and I’m not as interested in Asian culture as I am in the diverse Australian culture.  In the future I plan on traveling to Germany and Poland to hopefully meet family relatives who live there and explore my heritage.

Top 12 Songs Found in Australia

So why did I choose 12? Well 12 is my lucky number so I’m thinking you’re about to listen to 12 awesome songs because you were lucky enough to read this!  Below is a great list of songs ranging from hip-hop to dance/techno.  I found all of these songs while in Australia, mostly by hearing them at the club or on my friend’s computer.  Let me know what you think & please remember to vote on you favorite song at the end! They are in no specific order.

12. Havana Brown – Run the Night

@djhavanabrown

 

Rain, GO AWAY!

It’s been raining here for days.  I’m not talking about a little here and there. I mean straight downpour! The thunderstorms have been pretty cool to watch and I feel like I’m in a tropical storm with all this wind. I’ve basically been stuck in my room watching Alcatraz and reading Start Something That Matters by Blake Mycoskie (owner of TOMS shoes). I rented Alcatraz on my plane ride from Charlotte to LAX and instantly fell in love with it.  It’s entertaining and only $1.99/ episode on iTunes. I have been reading a lot too.  Since December, I’ve picked up 3 books (that’s a lot for me lol) and have been reading about entrepreneurship. As I’m double majoring, my degree in business is only for general business administration so I’m trying to teach myself about entrepreneurship. I’m reading about success stories and starting to gather my thoughts about creating my own business.

I’ve been recognizing lately that I really do like my alone time, but I get a little depressed.  I know I do it to myself, but I find it relaxing to be alone. Of course I’m first in line to do anything with friends, but I’m not really going out to find people.  I think all this rain has just done this to me for the last week, but I need the rain to stop. All of my shoes are wet, I don’t have an umbrella, and to top things off, I’m drenched when I go to class. <— Annoying!

The positives:

1. I booked my flights & accommodations to the Whitsunday Islands & Sydney
2. I’m currently planning a 1 week trip to New Zealand with friends
3. Classes are pretty fun so far
4. I’m stocked up on food!

 

UniCentral

This place is beautiful. I feel like I’m at a resort.  Moving in wasn’t too bad.  The staff are friendly and I got to meet my roommates right away.  The Sunshine Coast is perfect for me.

So far, I’ve hopped on the bus to the beach, went shopping for necessities, bought a nice bottle of Bacardi and had an epic night last night.  My favorite place so far is Mooloolaba.  It’s literally a beach town you would see in a magazine/ movie.  The town is fully of life and a pretty diverse crowd.

My advice for anyone studying abroad in Australia is to relax.  Living is so easy here. The only downside that I’ve experienced so far is how ridiculously expensive everything is in Australia.

My goals for this week:  1) Meet new people,  2) find a kangaroo,  3) buy a cell phone, &  4) find a small job