Coming Home

President George Forsythe discusses the idea that "in the 21st century, the term 'global education' is redundant," as a well-rounded education should innately include strong global elements (Lynch, 2013).

For this reasons, many U.S. colleges and universities emphasize the importance of international programs for the reasons that Forsythe described such as, cultural immersion, global understanding, community building, and a physical presence in the international market (Lynch, 2013).

These factors were emphasized during my process of deciding to study abroad as well.

For this reason, when I made the decision to study abroad in Australia, I was expecting these factors to be realized, and that I would feel like a small facet in and contributor to the overall process of the globalization of education.

However, the take-away points that I have attained through my experience in Australia have proven to be much more personal and have showed me a lot about my place in the world as a student of global education.

In line with the points emphasized by U.S. colleges and universities, I have learned a lot about cultural immersion, global understanding, community building, and the physical presence in the international market. However, the most valuable point that I will take away from this experience is that there is more to an education than the end-point, and that the process is much more significant.

As I travelled through Australia and New Zealand, I encountered multiple people who I chatted with about American education. The most common view that they held about education in the U.S. is that it seems rushed, stressful and confusing. Many people cannot believe that I went into college with a career in mind and everything that I have done in college has centered on those goals. Other than service trips and family vacations, I never spent significant time abroad.

My lifestyle is extremely different from most of the individuals I have encountered here. Many people who I have met here are shocked that it is commonplace for American students to go directly from high school to college, with only a summer break in between. For example, I met a German girl who was eighteen and was spending a year traveling through Oceania until she decided whether or not she wanted to pursue University. She was also utilizing this time to experience life in order to decide what type of career she is interested in. This is very common for students from Europe and the Oceania region. But from an American perspective, "gap years"or "time off" are generally the exception rather than the rule. Americans tend to be focused on finishing college in 4 years and securing a stable career as quickly as possible. However, my encounters with these individuals have forced me to take a step back and look at my educational career in search for a deeper meaning.

This is the to-do list that I brought with me when I came to Australia of major things I needed to do while here. I think it reflects what I viewed as important to me before studying here. I will still complete these tasks, but I will also try to make more out of my educational experiences, beyond simply completing tasks. 

I feel that my Allegheny College experience has been very conductive to well-rounded learning and has allowed me to have important life experiences, but because of my experiences abroad, I am much more cautious about "locking myself in," in terms of a career or lifestyle and have become much more interested in the educational process, rather than completing my education. The educational process never ends and I now know that I want the life I lead to reflect a constant state of learning and betterment of myself.