| Major(s) | Psychology and German Studies dual major, Sociology minor |
| Hobbies | Teaching, playing violin classically and with mariachi, speaking German, coffee, reading, adventuring, meeting everyone |
| Hometown | Winnetka, Illinois |
| Program/Study Site | IES Vienna, Austria |
Why study abroad?
So many reasons! Scripps is super-generous when it comes to course credit for many programs, and at this point you should be able to find a program that fits your major/GE requirements/personality pretty well! Almost all of my friends were all over the world while I was abroad, which was pretty amazing to realize. My experience abroad was invaluable and completely refreshing. I was able to take on new interests, interact with people in a completely new way, get to know a new city like it was my own, and have a different balance in my life than at Scripps.
Why did you choose Austria?
With German studies as one of my majors, I wanted to be able to speak German on an every day basis. In the end, I was deciding between a small German town and Vienna, a larger metropolis. I wanted to be able to live in a city, and wanted the city skills of navigating public transportation and of course have lots of nooks and crannies to explore.What courses did you enroll in while abroad?
Because the semesters in Austria (and many countries in Europe) differ from the American semester significantly, I couldn't enroll in University of Vienna courses during the fall semester that I was abroad. I took courses at the IES Abroad center. I was enrolled in Kulturgeschichte Österreich (Cultural History of Austria taught in German), Musik in Wien (Music in Vienna taught in German), Conversation and Composition (German language course), Cross-Cultural Psychology (taught in English), and a teaching internship. I also tutored a 5-year old in English while I was there.What was your living situation?
I lived in an international dorm in one of the outer districts of Vienna. Students living in Europa-Haus attended many different universities throughout Vienna, not just one, which was unique. I chose a dorm because my program didn't offer many homestays and I didn't want to live in an apartment complex with other Americans. I had an American roommate, had a bathroom, a stovetop and a little fridge. We weren't on a meal plan, so I learned to cook a bit which was great!What did you do for fun?
Once I learned to separate myself from the other Americans on my program, I made Austrian friends very quickly. They all attended the Wirtschaftsuniversität (economic university) and I spent most of my free time with them. For fun we would go to a classic Viennese coffeehouse where you can sit for hours (and no waiter wants you to move!), in a park, or on someone's apartment balcony when the weather was nice, and when it started getting colder, we would cook together and have movie-nights in both English and German. Once the Christkindlmärkte (Christmas Markets) opened up, we would frequent those to eat freshly baked pastries and drink warm Glühwein (mulled wine). I also went to many concerts, including classical and opera (which Vienna is famous for), a modern music series, and some small independent bands.The most challenging aspects of your experience:
I was surprised with how much of my energy was spent dealing with the 110 other Americans on my program. After four semesters at Scripps, the level of conversation in the courses and outside of them was definitely different than at the Claremont Colleges. The people on the program also seemed to have different reasons for studying abroad than I did, and it was difficult to make sure I was getting exactly what I wanted out of my abroad experience.
Final comments or suggestions for future participants:
As a language student, I wish I had taken into account the program's language requirement (no German requirement) before choosing IES Vienna. Because there's also a music program connected with the basic program at IES Vienna, many students are drawn to that as opposed to the German language aspect. Over half of the other IES students had never spoken German before entering the program, though they were required to take it during the semester. This made it difficult, because I was always around English in school (except for my actual classes), and many people weren't advanced enough to practice with regularly.
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