Murray State University

Celebrate diversity!

At MSU you have the opportunity to study cultures by reading books and looking at pictures from famous sites. By studying abroad, you take a culture class that can never be equaled. You have the chance to touch, taste, hear, and smell the culture being studied...an in-depth study that can only take place on location.

Surprise yourself in another language!

You can study foreign languages here at MSU, but the experience of living and functioning in that language is not real until you need to catch the bus, order food, and buy a sweater in that language. You will leave a study abroad experience with fluency you never dreamed you'd have.

Introduce yourself to trailblazers all over the world!

You have the opportunity at MSU to meet students from other countries, but it won't be the same experience you'll have while studying in Spain or Italy. When you study abroad, you also meet other American students who see international experiences in the same light as you. You meet foreign students who have different perspectives on life, love, and happiness. You meet teachers who provide insights into culture that you never pondered. And you meet yourself. You find out what it means to be an American and how other citizens of the world view you.

Embark on a credit-bearing travel adventure!

You have the chance to travel abroad and gain college credit at the same time. You can study German in Germany, art in Italy, or literature in England. Not only do you study these things, but you get to put your hands on them and practice them in their native environment. Your friends will all be jealous when you're sitting in art class in Murray looking at slides saying "Oh yeah, I saw that when I was in Florence." Study abroad not only gives you the chance to study in another country, but also to TRAVEL. Experience the nightlife in London or the countryside of Ireland. Talk about fun!

Become more open-minded!

You'll return from a study abroad experience with a broader knowledge of the world and its inhabitants. You'll see things differently because you had the chance to live in a world that is not known to other Americans. You will return to MSU with a greater understanding of how you fit into the world, how Americans fit in the world, and how the world operates. You may return and decide to change your major or minor or add the study of a second language to your academic goals. What's more, you'll begin to operate on the assumption that everyone is just as smart as you are ... just speaking a different language and growing up under different circumstances.

Exceed your expectations!

After a study abroad experience, students usually have the idea that they can do anything. Think about it. You've traveled abroad, sometimes alone, and made it back in one piece! you've booked train tickets, taken taxis, ordered food in another language, managed to dress like a native, studied and passed your classes, hiked through the Australian outback and translated the shoe sizes in Scotland to those in America. You've done it all...and by yourself. you didn't need mom or dad to help you take the bus or buy your books. You did it alone. And now you can do anything.

Impress a recruiter!

One day you'll want a job. When you apply for the same job that 100 others have applied for, what is going to make you stand out? What is going to make an employer pick you over the other 99 applicants? A study abroad experience will do just that. Having study abroad on your resume speaks volumes to potential employers. You are saying you have initiative, you're an explorer and you're willing to step out and take a risk on your own. You also let employers know that you have lived and studied with people from other cultures. When you enter the workforce of the 21st century, you'll likely be working side by side with foreigners. You'll share an office with someone from Japan, France, or Finland. It's not all Americans out there. You have to show that you can work with people from other cultures. A study abroad experience shows that you've not only studied another culture, but you've also prospered in it. This is your chance to show your employer that you are one step ahead of the pack.

Have stories to tell your grandkids!

Things will happen on a study abroad experience that you never imagined existed. In England, you'll get on the wrong train, going the wrong direction, get off in the middle of nowhere and end up back where you started by midnight, too late to try again. In Germany you'll breathe in the desperation of the Holocaust victims at Dachau, the first concentration camp. In Japan, you'll hear these people who don't seem anything like you speak perfect English in the heart of Tokyo. You'll drink a cappuccino at Starbucks and pick up a cheeseburger at McDonald's in the heart of Paris. You'll find out that the world really is a small place to be when you see a long-lost friend on a ferry across the English Channel. It's amazing the vivid stories you'll be able to tell your grandkids (and the ones you won't).