Study Abroad Goals

Studying abroad has always been a dream of mine; in fact, it was one of the main reasons why I decided to go to college. I have always wanted to experience my major from a different perspective and culture that I can’t get from home. The chance to gain different journalistic styles and written communication will help me to improve my overall journalistic ability. Furthermore, interacting with new people of different backgrounds will encourage me as a journalist to tell stories from a different perspective. I think that the chance to immerse myself in a different education system is a great way to understand the people and their different traditions and cultures and will help me to have a better, well-rounded experience at Maryville College.

            Going to college out of state was the first time I had ever been away from home. I think that leaving the US will help me to better appreciate the nation’s people and how their history differs from the US. The chance to experience a completely new way of life is very exciting and fascinating to me because, upon graduation, I am not sure where I want to live; maybe the United Kingdom could be the place for me to grow socially and career wise. However, I will not know until I get there.

            I chose the United Kingdom because, as a requirement to graduate, I must do a senior thesis about a subject within my major. I plan to do a study on how TV journalism is the same/different between the UK and the US. My thesis will focus on news and current events in both countries as well as international relations and how it is presented in the news media. I need to go to United Kingdom to fully understand the media presentation and media’s effect on society.