Study abroad students set to return
Editor-in-Chief
After nearly two months of studying abroad in London, the eight DMACC students will be returning to Iowa on April 13.
This year’s group of study abroad students have toured places like Stonehenge, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Stratford upon Avon, Salisbury Cathedral, Ireland, Prague and several other sites in and around London.
DMACC study abroad students Emma Allen and Melina Nuzum said that they are enjoying seeing the sights and experiencing the culture that the U.K. has to offer.
Allen said, “My favorite part of the trip has been all of it: getting a chance to be over here and see these places and meet new people.”
Nuzum said that she especially enjoyed visiting Oxford and getting to eat in the same pub where author J. R. R. Tolkien met with his fellow authors.
DMACC Boone student Sean Hanlin, who is not studying abroad, said, “The only thing that ever stopped me [from studying abroad] was that I thought it might interfere with my learning.”He said that if he had the money to study abroad, he probably would.
“I don’t really see any reason not to go, besides the money and not being ready for it,” Hanlin said.
While the application deadline for DMACC’s study abroad program is not due until November, students who are certain that they would like to study abroad next year stand to save money.
According to the DMACC website, the estimated minimum cost to study abroad for a DMACC student in 2013 was $9,500. That figure doesn’t include living expenses, which were estimated to be around $1,500 to 3,000, or the estimated $250 for textbooks.
DMACC Boone supplies a $1,000 (or $500 for two students) Foundation Scholarship specifically for study abroad students. The deadline for applications is early November. National scholarships, like the Benjamin Gilman Scholarship, are also available for study abroad students.
Allen said she applied for the DMACC Boone Foundation Scholarship and received the $1,000. She said that other than that scholarship, she and her family paid for studying abroad themselves.
Interested students can also use federal financial aid to help cover the expenses of studying abroad. Any leftover grant money from the fall semester can be used to pay for the study abroad program as long as the amount of grant money is not paying for the entire trip.
Nuzum said she took advantage of student loans to help pay the cost of studying abroad.