In the spring semester of my third year, I studied abroad in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Croatia is a gorgeous coastal country in Central and Southeast Europe. Known for its seafood, wine, coastline, and well-preserved Roman ruins, Croatia is the perfect spot to vacation.
Which inspires the question… Why did I choose to study abroad?
I had always had this vague notion of studying abroad, but in my second year, I needed to find a program (I touch more on this process in How to Find a Study-Abroad Program). Long story short, I decided on Croatia. RIT had a good Web and Mobile Computing satellite program, and I figured that if the program sucked, at least I could swim in the Adriatic Sea every morning.
In the end, I was right in a lot of ways… and wrong in others. Let’s dive in.
My Program (Academically)
My academic program was a lot easier than I thought it would be. It may be that Oberlin’s Computer Science program is intensive, but my academic program in Croatia had more leniency around its lectures and assignments. Professors often ended class early or allowed in-class worktime. Two of my professors canceled two weeks of classes to give us time to work on our final projects.
Strangely, I found this a little disappointing. I enjoy school and the challenge of it. I was disappointed that my classes were not more rigorous. While an easier schedule allowed me to have more time to travel, it didn’t provide me with the academic enrichment I was hoping for.
This seems to be a pretty generic effect across study abroad experiences.
My Program (Socially)
Unlike most study abroad programs, mine was not flush with Americans. In fact, it occurred to me pretty quickly that my program was a locally convenient school for many Balkan students. Of a student body of a few hundred students, there were two other Americans.
There were upsides and downsides to this. I didn’t speak Croatian well (or really at all), which meant that conversationally, I floundered a bit. Classes were taught in English, but many students and professors conversed in Croatian.
An upside is that I experienced Croatian culture in an immersive way. Instead of pre-games with other American students or aperitifs at expensive restaurants, I sat at a cafe and inhaled cigarette smoke for three hours. I tried almost every locally-recommended restaurant in Dubrovnik. I traveled to Montenegro, and I fed the local stray cats.
Overall, I found this experience to be lonely and difficult at times. It could also be rewarding. The friendships I made felt very genuine, and I enjoyed exploring a different part of the world. I found that I really loved having me time at the end of the day, especially because so many social interactions demanded energy with the language and cultural barrier.
My Travels
I solo-traveled almost every weekend while I was abroad. I visited Rome, London, Vienna, Barcelona, Prague, Dresden, and Berlin, as well as Saxony Switzerland. My friend Anna joined me in Dresden and Berlin as she was studying in Germany. I made a friend in London, and he joined me on my trip to Rome. In Rome, we bought sandwiches and walked around the Colosseum. And yes, we were there when the Pope died. I'll never see the Vatican so flushed with reporters again.
Overall, I found solo-traveling to be the best experience of my study abroad. I made so many friends solo-traveling, I tried so many interesting things, and I got over my fear of being alone. I ate alone at a restaurant in London and chatted for thirty minutes with my Greek waiter. I explored the Prague Zoo and ate soft-serve ice cream at the botanical gardens after. I went clubbing in Berlin and woke up the next morning at eight to explore the city more. I ate strawberries in Barcelona and walked down the street. I went swimming with a woman from Australia on the beach in Croatia and later, we visited Rome at the same time, updating each other on our travel journeys.
I don’t think that you can study abroad wrong. My biggest advice is that you should not only do but seek out the hard things. Try something scary. Talk to someone in a foreign language, knowing it’s okay if you get it wrong. Volunteer abroad. Eat alone. Go on a hike without music.
And when you come back, well, Oberlin is waiting for you. (:
