Study Abroad Scholarship Helps Expand Students' Horizons

3/5/2020

I found that this trip, while allowing me to learn more about a topic I love, also allowed me to better know myself in ways I hadn’t before.

Research shows that students who participate in foreign study programs have better grades, increased retention, and graduate from college at higher rates than students who do not study abroad. What’s more, the experience helps build the critical thinking, problem solving, time management, and communication skills that have become requirements for success in today’s global marketplace. Thanks to generous donors who understand the value of international travel, a growing number of students receive scholarships of up to $2,000 to help cover the cost of their study abroad trip.

This scholarship helped SPC biology student Michael Gruber travel to Italy in Spring 2016 to study Humanities. Michael has always been fascinated by the language and culture of foreign nations but never had the ability to travel outside of the United Sates. In the midst of studying and experiencing the artwork, architecture and history of Italy, Michael also learned more about himself.

“While self-discovery wasn’t in the program’s description, it was something I most certainty learned on the trip”, he said.

Upon returning home to SPC, Michael has found a new appreciation for his studies and says he knows that his study abroad experience created memories that will last a lifetime.