Diverse Sources - Interviews

Name: Ryan Tiemann

Age: 22

Gender: Male

Major: Ad/Mass Communication

Occupation: Retail

Class: Low

Race/ethnicity: Caucasian

Geography: Lewisville, TX

Email: rpt11@txstate.edu

1. No
2. N/A
3. “Mostly because I feel like I don’t have enough experience just yet in a class setting. I need to get a little more before I seriously consider doing that.”
4. “I don’t really know. I don’t really have any internship experience. Right now, Mass Comm Week has been doing pretty well with getting people networked.”
5. “Well first off, it’s good networking, it gets people involved in talking to people that are already in the business. It gets those contacts early on, and that’s very important with a lot of careers.”
6. “A lot of times you’re not getting paid for an internship, so it’s taking time out of the day that could be used for education as well as work.”   

 

Name: Mitchell Oden

Age: 22

Gender: Male

Major: Theater, emphasis on performance & production

Occupation: student

Class: Low

Race/ethnicity: Caucasian

Geography: Richardson, TX

Email: odenlcd@gmail.com

1. “No”
2. N/A
3. “Well, the one I had gotten close to doing was the Shakespeare study abroad one, but it takes place in the summer and I’m graduating in the spring. It’s really expensive too, and I wouldn’t have financial aid with that.”
4. “I would say advertising because I just barely got a glimpse of it, and if i had known about it earlier, I probably would’ve easily done it.”
5. “Again, referring to the Shakespeare one, just being there. It’s one thing to just hear about Shakespeare, learn about it and get it talked to your face. But actually being there, getting involved with our hands on, I think is something incredible. It’s a once in a lifetime experience.”
6. “The cost. That was for me. The time constraint. Not enough of them?

Name: Jackson Kimbrough

Age: 23

Gender:Male

Major: Chemistry

Occupation: Student

Class: Low

Race/ethnicity: Caucasian

Geography: Portland, TX
EMail: jlk157@txstate.edu

1.  “No, I have never done that."
2. N/A 
3.  “I guess mostly because I’m kind of lazy, so that’s mostly on me. And I’m also kind of intimidated by going somewhere unfamiliar, being away from what I’m used to. And also potentially it being expensive. So there’s a lot of things that factor in to kind of pushing me away from trying it.” 
4.  “I feel like probably the biggest one, at least for me, would be cost. But then, I don’t know what can be done to make that more affordable. But I think that’s probably a big one.” 
5.  “I think they’re actually really nice. You get out there, you get to see how the world works, you get real world experience, you get hands on, you can network yourself, and you can really get a grasp and a feel for how things really work. Instead of just being behind a desk doing school work, you get to get out and see it for yourself.” 
6.  “I feel like a downside would be like being somewhere new, like over in Europe, I feel like it would be really easy to get caught up in being somewhere new, and being somewhere different, and just focusing on the place that you’re at, rather than sitting down and actually doing the work you went there to do. So I feel like that might get in the way, of doing the study abroad. Actually being there and getting distracted.”

Texas State Students: What They Think About the Study Abroad Program
By Haley Peters
hjp27@txstate.edu

SAN MAROS, Texas— On Tuesday, October 24, Texas Sate students said what they think about the accessibility and safety of the University's Study Abroad program.

Texas State University creates an opportunity for students to participate in alternative learning— learning outside the classroom, and for the most part, outside of the country as well. The Study Abroad Office states that their mission is to provide a "safe, accessible, academically rigorous, geographically diverse, and a culturally enriching global educational experience to our students". However, while interest remains high in the program, many students believe that the Study Abroad program provokes accessibility and safety issues.

Kathia Avilez
Taken by: Ashley Brown

While students have interest in the Study Abroad program at Texas State University, many students agreed as a whole that the opportunity is expensive. Kathy Avilez, a Senior at Texas State, comments that even if it was affordable, there are still rigorous requirements in getting into the program.


 "I think the downside would be the requirements maybe. The competition is pretty fierce. And so maybe people don't apply because they're scared they're not going to get accepted," Avilez said.

Sydney Hewlett, a sophomore at Texas State, offered solutions of what could make the program more accessible to students. 

Sydney Hewlett
Taken By: Haley Peters

 

"Offer like a scholarship kind of thing. Like, a contest to see if they could, like, win a free trip after they give a card," Hewlett said. 


Once you have made it into the program, everything is fine and dandy, right? Not necessarily. Many students agreed on potential safety hazards. Odalys Delgado expresses her insight on what makes being in a completely new place tricky. 

Odalys Delgado

Taken By: Michael Imo

"Not knowing your way around," Delgado said.

Not only does not knowing your way around becomes a cause of hazard for traveling abroad, but specifics on other countries restrict the level of self-defense. Chauncey Ling-Miller shares his knowledge on foreign law.

Chauncey Ling-Miller
Taken By: John McCabe

"My family in Germany says that their are a to of security problems over there. Theres no concealed or open carry," Ling-Miller said.

Overall, students were at a common consensus that traveling overseas currently can potentially be dangerous. Allison Manning, a freshman at Texas State, sums up her feelings about the protection of the program.

Allison Manning
Taken By: John McCabe

"I feel like the only downside is you can never guarantee security I feel like thats why a lot of people don't study abroad," Allison said.

However, Sophomore Hunter Archield-Cupit, who participated in the study abroad trip in Barcelona, Spain, has a different view on the program's protection. 

Hunter Archield-Cupit
Taken By: John McCabe

"You get to leave home and explore the world while being in a safe space, which I think is a cool thing for people to do.You get to experience different culture," Archield-Cupit said.

For more information on the Study Abroad program and what measures they take to stay safe, click here.

The Effects of Globalization May Be Your New Excuse to Travel in College

By- Jhazmine Billups
Jcb192@txstate.edu

SAN MARCOS, Tx --  Globalization, the development of an increasingly integrated global economy according to Webster's dictionary, is a phenomenon that is increasing the already competitive nature of job markets all over the world. Unfortunately, college students in the United States are not as prepared as their peers in other countries for this rapid development.

According to the Institute of International Education, only one in every ten students in the United States joins study abroad programs during their college career.

Andy Munoz, 21
Picture by Quin Palmer

Texas is no exception with just 16,605 college students participating in study abroad programs during the 2014-2015 academic year, according to NASFA: Association of International Educators.


Some students at our university have a few ideas about what is possibly going amiss with program participation here at Texas State University.

Andy Munoz, a Clinical Laboratory Science major, was unsure if the school even had scholarships for students interested but financially unable to participate in Study abroad programs.

Jacob Henigan, 23

Photo by - Jhazmine Billups

Rebecca Hobbesland, 19 -

Photo by Jhazmine Billups

 Rebecca Hobbesland, a Biology Major, also spoke of the financial burden and confusion students have with study abroad programs. She said,


"I would say people should advertise them, maybe, a little more. Talk about the experience and maybe make an affordable plan for students..."

The Study Abroad Office does have financial aid for eligible students and students seeking to gain credit toward their degree can use their Free Application for Federal Student Aid to help pay for their studies outside the country. However, even with the available scholarship and financial aid opportunities, it does not appear that students at our university know about all the resources at their disposal.

French Major Jacob Henigan stated that another primary problem for students trying to participate in study abroad programs is finding the time to take off and join in a study abroad experience. Schedule conflicts cause issues for students interested in learning more about studying overseas.

Quinton Carter, 18
Taken by: Ashley Brown 

Alma Cavazos, 18
Taken by: Ashley Brown

Alma Cavazos and Quinton Carter both said that the times of the Study Abroad Fair and information session clash with student schedules. Cavazos said,


"I know that they hold a lot of meetings, but most of them are when I have class. So maybe try to change around the meetings, maybe have some on the weekends, that would be great."

Quinton said of the study abroad fair,

"I know that they have a Study Abroad Fair today, but they make it in the middle of the day, and most students have class during that time."

International perspective

According to the Institute of International Education, Texas has the third highest population of international students at 82,184 enrolled.

Jaswanath Pattipati, an international graduate student from Ongole, India, said had not been able to participate in the internship opportunities associated with the Study Abroad Offices here at Texas State University. Pattipati went on to say,

"They should be globalized. So, even we {International students} get a chance to look into these programs and really get a chance to go into

these programs for internships."



For more information about the study abroad programs offered at Texas State check out these links- Programs, Scholarship Eligibility and Thornton International House Location.