Contact Ask Me About… My experience is unique because, as an Egyptian born in America, I had always been connected to my roots but through the lens of my parents’ perspective. Every 8 years, we’d visit Egypt, staying primarily in the village where my family is from. These visits were special but often limited to…
Contact Ask Me About… Students should ask me about navigating study abroad as an adoptee returning to my birth country while still learning the language. My semester at Fudan University in Shanghai was not just about classes, but it was a personal journey. As a Chinese adoptee raised in the US, I looked like many…
Contact Ask Me About… As I’m already studying in a country that isn’t my own as an international student, people could ask why I’d choose to go abroad again. For me, each new environment pushes me to re-learn how I operate, from the way I approach assignments, to how I communicate in group settings, to…
Contact Ask Me About… Starting with GRIP: Power Up Gambia, my first-ever summer internship was also my first time working in Africa. What made this experience unique was learning how to navigate a completely new culture while carrying out my first professional role. I was adapting to new work expectations, living in a rural setting,…
Contact Ask Me About… I’d love for other students to ask me how I built real connections with local communities while studying abroad in Beijing, China, and Braga, Portugal. In Beijing, during the Penn Global Seminar program, I didn’t just stick to the classroom. I joined calligraphy workshops, savored traditional music, and explored vibrant food…
Contact Ask Me About… As someone with Egyptian ancestry, I have always dreamed of traveling to Egypt and learning more about where my family came from. My grandfather came from Egypt to the U.S. in the 1950s and I have heard countless stories about his journey and determination for a better future for himself and…
Contact Ask Me About… My Experience Abroad Although not directly related to my field of study, visiting the National Wildlife Institute of India helped me think of the way in which scientific research is conducted around the world. Due to the nature of the institute, researchers follow the guidelines and base their frameworks on UN…
Contact Ask Me About… Living and working in a new language: While staying in Argentina for two months, I had to navigate day-to-day life and a workspace in a new language. Being an international student from Germany I have had a similar experience coming to the US for college, nevertheless, spending an entire summer only…
Contact Ask Me About… Within six months, I went from Tokyo to Dehradun, India—two places that could not be more different. Tokyo runs on precision: trains are on time to the second, schedules are followed exactly, and even rush-hour crowds move in quiet order. Dehradun is the opposite: life moves at its own pace, plans…
Contact Ask Me About… My Penn Abroad experience through the PGS, Policy Task Force on U.S.–China Relations, was unique because it reversed the typical study-abroad path. Instead of learning a language while abroad, I advanced my Mandarin beforehand in anticipation of the trip. Taking Chinese II that semester gave me structure, but the upcoming program pushed…