Anyone who goes abroad for any amount of time will be more than happy to tell you about all the ways that going abroad has changed them, and I’ve been fortunate enough to spend 2 calendar years/4+ semesters abroad during my time at Northeastern. Reflecting on those experiences, I think spending time abroad has not only allowed me to discover myself better but it has also changed my professional and academic goals for my future.
If I had to identify the “light bulb moment” that really inspired me to want to go out and explore more internationally, it would be when I was last co-oping in London (Spring 2015) and became close friends with a British student named James. James was studying linguistics at university and I was amazed at the fact that he was able to speak five different languages fluently (English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish), and is currently learning a sixth (Mandarin). Beyond just speaking the languages, however, he also was interested in learning the history of those countries and connecting their narratives together in respect to their own history and as a part of the world narrative as well. Apart from the UK, James had also lived in Germany and France as a child, travelled all over Europe, and completed a year abroad in Brazil. He used to jokingly tease me over America’s political policies and I learned from him how to challenge all the standards that society normalizes the American youth to believe. Like my mother always told me I would, I even began to regret not taking foreign language courses more seriously during high school. I’ve since adopted many of the same passions for history, interconnection, and cultural dialogue that James exposed me to, and since he was always so passionate about learning languages and assimilating into the cultures that he was surrounded by, it was infectious and unlocked this hidden passion within myself that I now find spreading into every facet of my life plan.
I think the single greatest benefit of studying abroad is getting to do all the crazy things you’d only dreamt of and gaining the world perspective that doing those things gives you. I’ve jumped out of a plane above the great barrier reef, I’ve backpacked across Europe by myself, and I’ve made so many friends that I have people to visit and places to stay in more countries than I can even probably remember at one time. The older generations love to criticize the younger ones by saying that they are too concerned with themselves, taking selfies and spending far too much time on social media. While I don’t know if I agree or disagree with that sentiment, it reminds me that my favorite thing about going abroad is how small and humble it truly makes me feel. It reminds me that the world isn’t all about me, that people operate in different ways than that which I grew up with, and that life happens wherever you are, whether you’re aware of it or not.
Thanks so much for reading my blog this past semester; I hope you’ve enjoyed it!
All the best,
Jonathan Zhang
