Want to experience what it’s like living away from home, living in a completely different country, surrounded by a diverse set of laws, beliefs, and standards? The cultural adventure awaits for all interested, travel hungry SLCC students.
SLCC’s Study Abroad program offers SLCC students a unique learning experience of what it’s like living in a different country and living under different cultural standards hands-on. The program also offers students an understanding of another country’s art, history and medicine.
“SLCC’s Study Abroad program offers 4 expeditions, that last up to three weeks long: China, England, Japan, and Vietnam,” said SLCC’s Director of Faculty Service’s Sandra Kikuchi. “Before each expedition, all participating students are interviewed before they are accepted into the program. Once accepted, participating students must attend all required orientation sessions and participate in all scheduled activities during the expedition.”
“Each program is lead by an SLCC faculty member that will guide students throughout the entire trip. Program excursions will require a large amount of walking, so bring a good comfy pair of tennis shoes,” said Kikuchi.
Although students are overloaded with orientations, excursions and tours all day, they are given Sundays off as a day of freedom. “A majority of students use this day to explore or revisit places that caught their interest, ” said Kikuchi.
“The main reason why a lot of students sign up for study abroad, is to get an idea of what it’s like to live in a different culture and learn to appreciate a culture’s history and traditions,” said Kikuchi. “They also get an understanding of just how nice and genuine people are to Americans.”
Kikuchi tells a story about how a student was lost in Japan on his free day and met a friendly encounter, who aided him back to his classmates. “In our most recent visit to Japan, one of the students got lost on his day off. He asked a local Japanese man for help, but learned that he didn’t speak a word of English,” she said. “The man made a phone call to a relative, who’s fluent in both languages, to help him better understand the situation more. The man was so nice, that he went out of his way to walk the student back to student lodging.”
Kikuchi explains how a lot of students come back and say that “it’s a life changing experience” and that “they crave round two.” “Not only do students learn about another country’s culture, history, art, etc. but they also learn how to manage their money and how to live on their own,” she said. “A majority of students who’ve participated in this experience often partake in another study abroad expedition.”
For additional information about Study Abroad please visit www.slcc.edu/studyabroad, or contact Sandra Kikuchi at sandra.kikuchi@slcc.edu.