Can I study abroad as an engineer in college?

Can I study abroad as an engineer in college?  This is a question that many students often ask.  The answer is YES, and you all in the perfect time of your college careers to start planning for it!

One of the reasons I became an engineer was because I wanted to travel.  When I came to Penn State I looked for every opportunity possible to see and learn about the world.  The great thing about Penn State is that it provides so many opportunities for you to do this, whether you do it through an engineering program or not!

There are semester programs (where you live in another country for a fall or spring semester), embedded programs (where you may travel as part of a class), and summer programs (these are typically shorter than entire semester but still a few weeks in length).  Each program is unique and it is up to you to find one that works for you. 

The College of Engineering has many options for semester abroad programs.  You can see them for yourself here: http://www.engr.psu.edu/global/students/SemStudyAbroad.htm

There are also programs available through the Office of Global Programs: http://gpglobalea.gp.psu.edu/

Maybe a semester isn’t your thing?  Take some summer classes in another country! Get involved in a class where you have the opportunity to travel.  That’s what I did.  This past May I traveled to Budapest, Hungary to present a project that I worked on all semester with my teammates from Covinus University in Budapest.  After my freshman year I traveled to Costa Rica with the Global Renewable Energy Education Network.  While I was there I toured hydropower, geothermal, biofuel, wind, and solar power facilities.  Not only did I learn a lot about myself through traveling, but I learned so much about the customs, culture and history of each place! Studying abroad expands your comfort zone and really opens your mind to many possibilities.

If you start looking into this now, you can do this too! Talking to people is a great way to see what kind of program you want to do.  Student envoys have an office in Hammond where you can talk to students who have been involved in a variety of global programs. 

The most important thing to remember is that study abroad takes A LOT of planning.  Even though you are just entering your freshman year, if you are considering going abroad set up a meeting with your academic advisor and begin planning your classes around it if necessary.  Look into the program you want to do and see if there are recommendations for how long certain elements should be completed in advance.  Everyone is different and every experience you have will be unique.  Like I said before, all of you are in the perfect time of your college careers to start looking into studying abroad, so take advantage of it!

Warning: Once you start traveling you won’t want to stop.

Heather Pieszala is a junior in Mechanical Engineering and a mentor for WEPO'13!  To read more about Heather visit her WEPO Profile:  http://raindancer45.wix.com/ladyengineers#!heather-pieszala/c1iuf