Dear Editor,
I am one of the 250,000 students who studied abroad last year. While the majority of these students returned home with life-changing anecdotes, I have a different story to tell.
It didn't work out for me.
I left my study abroad experience in Brighton, England six weeks into the 15 week program. This was mid-semester for all of my peers. While they were mid-semester in their respective colleges, I was living at my parents' home in Rice Lake, WI. I've been racking my brain every since I returned home, trying to figure out "what went wrong." There very well might not be an answer to that question but I owe myself the time to think critically and write about what happened.
I thought it would be the experience of a life-time. I thought I would travel throughout all of Europe. Above all else, I thought I could do it.
I'll start by examining my travel documents, bank statements, e-mails, journals and Facebook messages from the six weeks that I lived in England. Equally important, I will look at these artifacts from the time I spent at home when the rest of my peers were away at school.
For example,
Today I got an e-mail from easyJet, a cheap European airline. I've tried several times to unsubscribe from the spam mail but it seems that in more than one way I can't escape. Last spring I booked a flight from London, England to Barcelona, Spain--a flight I never boarded. This makes me feel like shit. Why?
Are you interested in reading my account?
Kristen Krebs
The OTHER side of the study abroad story, cant wait to hear it. After reading 20 query letters of spring break and study abroad expirence, I will be very excited to see the reverse side of the story. How it went "wrong" and what the possible factors may be.
I studied abroad in England and didn't hate it, but didn't love it either. I think a lot of people think studying abroad is all peaches and gravy, but there are pitfalls too. I like your idea.