Pointlife
Photo by Jacob Mathias
Students are given a chance to see a totally different part of the world through International Programs. One of the newest trips is a culinary journalism trip to greece.
Spotlight on International Programs
The Pointer
hshee298@uwsp.edu
If you’ve ever jogged through the Trail of Reflections in Schmeekle Reserve you may have stumbled across Enos Mill’s quote, “The essence is to travel gracefully rather than to arrive.” Students find themselves in the category of traveling more often than not; traveling home, traveling to visit family and friends, road tripping and in transit to the future. It’s a big world out there with a lot to discover and even a glance at the study abroad materials inside the International Programs office may turn into an urgent desire to harness a traveling propensity and grace your college experience with another layer.
Eric Yonke, history professor and director of International Programs at the University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point, believes that because of today’s global society, studying abroad should not be looked at as a frill but rather a central part of undergraduate study.
“It really doesn’t matter what you do after you graduate. There will be an international component with jobs and life in general these days,” said Yonke. “It is important to be exposed to other parts of the world. You have to get yourself out there.”
Yonke is not alone in his enthusiasm. In fact, there has been so much enthusiasm about International Programs at UWSP that it has been running for 40 years. The interest of students and faculty have molded the options that are now offered attracting approximately 20 percent of the UWSP student body. As impressive as this seems, Yonke feels it should still be higher.
He expressed studying abroad should be both possible and essential. The prices are manageable when noting everything that is included, and the timing is reasonable if students can evaluate their academic goals and plan ahead.
Different majors across the board should be able to time it right because of the more specific study abroad trips available. They have been tailored for different interests such as the Holocaust and the history of psychology. Professors look to students’ needs for experience and knowledge of the world when developing new programs.
The newest program formed when Elizabeth Fakazis, assistant professor of communication, led the “Culinary Journalism: The Food and Wines of the World” trip and travelled to Greece, with overwhelming student popularity, for the first time this past summer. Students have a wide range of possible trips to choose from though and don’t have to just stick within their major.
Obstacles are still present though, the biggest being a lack of prioritization. Yonke pointed out that if cost really was the biggest issue, then the London programs would not fill up like they do. According to the International Programs website, a semester in London runs about $10,400-$10,900. It is not the most expensive trip or the cheapest by a long shot.
Not realizing the significance in studying abroad proves to be the biggest deterrent. Yonke has a way to cure that. He urges for students to keep two things in mind: 1. Studying abroad will broaden your world perspective greatly. 2. It will help you develop creative problem solving and people skills while living outside the U.S.
After all, Enos Mills would probably argue that graduation really isn’t about the date and the title, but rather the journey to it. More information about International Programs can be found at www.uwsp.edu/studyabroad.
