Rachel Yu is a junior at Wharton, concentrating in Finance and OIDD, with a minor in Cinema and Media Studies. In Spring 2026, she will be studying abroad at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where she hopes to explore the intersection of global business and media culture. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, her upbringing has inspired her curiosity about…
SA: Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea Trakeem, one of the Semester Abroad Correspondents, shares his experience abroad during the Fall 2025 semester. Follow along with the group of correspondents on our blog and look out for their images on the @pennabroad Instagram feed. As December arrives in Seoul, I’ve started to notice how the city slowly transforms for winter, quietly, beautifully,…
SA: Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea Trakeem, one of the Semester Abroad Correspondents, shares his experience abroad during the Fall 2025 semester. Follow along with the group of correspondents on our blog and look out for their images on the @pennabroad Instagram feed. When I first arrived at Yonsei University on August 23, I knew I was entering one of Korea’s…
Chenyao Liu is a junior from Indiana studying Earth & Environmental Science and Cinema & Media Studies. Over winter break, she’ll travel to Taipei through a Penn Global Seminar to explore energy security and cross-straits relations in Taiwan. She also explores environmental issues closer to home as a Student Eco-Rep for Penn Sustainability. Outside the classroom, Chenyao is…
Mariama Njie is a junior from Douglasville, Georgia double majoring in Communications and Africana Studies. This semester, she’ll travel to the Gandhi Ashram in Gujarat, India through a Penn Global Seminar to examine non-violent social and political movements and the immense power of compassionate leadership. On campus, Mariama serves as the Political Chair for UMOJA,…
GRIP: Elephant Community Press in Hong Kong From tenth to twelfth grade, I attended a small, college-prep school called Miller. I can say with quite a degree of certainty that I wouldn’t be at Penn with the skills and confidence I now have without that school. Until this summer, though, I don’t think I could’ve…
GRIP: Elephant Community Press in Hong Kong For most of my life, I attended rural public schools where elementary school was a right turn from middle school, and high school one roundabout away. I lived in a little protected world in the middle of a prairie. Few ever left Stuarts Draft. Everyone’s educational ambitions centered…
GRIP: PR and Marketing in Bangkok, Thailand One thing no one warns you about before arriving in Bangkok is the weather—not just how hot and humid it is, but how quickly it changes. After multiple coworkers asked me how well I had adjusted to all of Bangkok’s rainy season, I naturally wondered: how bad can…
GRIP: Engineering Research in Singapore When I arrived in Singapore for my research internship at the National University of Singapore, I knew for sure I wanted to explore the local cuisine, a tantalizing combination of Chinese cuisine, Malaysian cuisine, Indian cuisine, and so much more. However, I didn’t expect the everyday act of ordering cai…
GRIP: Sustainable Development in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam If I had to pick one of the most unexpected joys from living in Vietnam for 2 months, besides the delicious coffees, beautiful cafes, and scrumptious food, it would have to be hoarding my fruit for the week. Starting off my fruit journey midway through the…