Let me
start with a fun fact about myself. My favorite animal is the duck- billed
platypus. I love how they are a strange
mix of characteristics from other animals. They have a duck bill, chipmunk
cheeks to store food, webbed feet, and they are mammals that lay eggs. Crazy
right? Did you know that the only place in the world you can see a platypus
(either in a zoo or in the wild) is Australia? So imagine my delight when looking
at summer programs abroad during one of my very first weeks of school I found one
that gave me engineering credit AND would take me to the country of my
dreams. It was a perfect combination of
work and play for my summer. I traveled throughout Australia while learning
about different energy sources. We visited sugar mills, uranium mines, wind
farms, Biofuels plants, and a six star green building. We built a battery in
class and tested the efficiency of solar panels. The course material was interesting and will
give me technical elective credits at Penn State.
My
class was made up of 32 engineering students from all over the United States
and enrolled in eight different majors .We aged from 19 to 26. It was really
interesting to work with students from a variety of universities, engineering majors,
and ages. Because of this program I now have friends and connections all over
the United States and Australia.
We studied under six different
professors who all specialized in different fields of study from energy storage
to wind energy. All our professors were Australian and would compare us to
their Australian students as well. Apparently American students are generally
better at presentations! We traveled with some of our professors which allowed
us to build strong relationships with them. One came with us to Kakadu National
Park. The time zone there is a half hour off from the place we had been before.
He forgot to change his watch and thought that we were always protesting class
when we didn't show up. He calmly came to the campfire where we were all
relaxing before class and asked if he could join our strike. He wasn't mad and
found us amusing. I think he was even a little disappointed when we told him we
were not actually protesting class but rather relaxing before it started
Between classes I was able to spend
my time on normal tourist activities. We traveled to Byron Bay, Brisbane,
Darwin, Melbourne, Sydney, and Cairns. In these places I held a koala, walked
across the Sydney Harbor Bridge, hiked the Blue Mountains, white water rafted in
the rain forest, and snorkeled on the Great Barrier Reef. My favorite place was
Kakadu National Park which is outside of Darwin in the Northern Territory. We
camped there for five days , while still surprisingly having class. The skies
were so clear that you could vividly see the Milky Way. It was nice to turn off
our technology and immerse ourselves in the landscape, wildlife, and culture of
the Northern Territory. Our guides were Aboriginals who showed us the art of
their ancestors, swimming holes safe from crocodiles, edible plants, and taught
us which animals were harmless. Most
importantly, in my travels, I saw SEVEN different platypuses. They were
everything I dreamed of and more.
The
moral of this story is you can advance your education while following your most
unrelated to engineering dreams. There are study abroad programs all over the
world. You can learn about these programs through Penn State's study abroad
office, they often have information sessions during the year, or online. Where
do you want to travel? Do some research. Odds are you will find something
engineering related there. If not, you can always use study abroad to fill your
general education credits. There are also opportunities to do research, service
work, or intern abroad. The possibilities are endless!
Maxine Taylor is a sophomore in Mechanical Engineering, and she is a junior for WEPO '14!
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