By: Sean Melville (COL ’20)
As an introduction to everyone, my name is Sean Melville and I am a rising senior majoring in Mathematics and Economics. On January 2nd, 2019, I packed my bags and headed to Belfast, Northern Ireland. I had never been to Europe before and had no clue what to expect. It almost felt like the first day of college all over again with that day filled with a mix of anticipation and unease to the unknown ahead.
I ended up at Queens University Belfast for a myriad of reasons, and I owe Sarah Mouringhan a huge thanks for her help in getting me there. If you’re unsure of what it is, or feel you’re too late to the scene, or are worried about wanting somewhere your friends aren’t going, do NOT worry. I was very late to the “abroad” scene; I walked into her office to learn more about my options just a few days before the October 1 deadline. I had a very specific set of criteria I needed in a university to keep me on course for my double major and give me the strong education and cultural experiences that make study abroad so impactful. She was able to listen to everything I needed and guide me towards a perfect program in a short period of time.
I recommend studying abroad to anyone, but especially to other STEM students. I took 2 econ classes and 1 math class. The math class was Numerical Analysis and my favorite class of the semester. This class was fantastic; I got exposure to higher level applied math in a totally new setting. Georgetown does not offer this subject material, and it was taught totally differently. While the Georgetown Math department is good, I found the focus often drifts more theoretical rather than applied math. At Queens, to help apply the math, we had weekly math labs where our class would write code for real life examples using the concepts from class. This further reinforced our knowledge base and helped my technical STEM skills.
Outside of the classroom, there is just as much to learn and enjoy. I travelled most weekends, and I had almost all of April off of school (Spring Break/ Easter Break/Study Days back to back), so I was able to take a monster trip across Western Europe then as well. I love Georgetown, but you simply cannot do that on campus. I visited 11 countries and countless cities throughout the semester. I learned how to operate independently in different cultures, how to navigate foreign places alone, and gained far more life skills that I otherwise would not have had. STEM majors tend to excel in the classroom, and we will continue to pick up very valuable skills and experiences in such a medium. However, the life and social skills that studying abroad offers can be equally valuable down the road. Besides, when else can you travel no strings attached with no business or family holding your schedule down. When else can you learn just as much on weekends as you can during class sessions? When else can you make a whole new set of friends that can last as long as the memories of your travels. It’s a blessing that Georgetown offers study abroad, and I recommend you take it. I was hesitant, and I thank those for pushing me over the edge. Everyone says so, but studying abroad really was that cool.
