Although summer days seem far away as downtown is adorned with beautiful lights and decorations for the holiday season, some Auburn students are already preparing their warm-weather plans. Many students spend their summers in class, interning, working or home with the family. However, every year, some young adventurers embrace early preparations to travel across the globe in hopes of attaining a little college credit while having the experience of a lifetime.

“I went to Italy this past summer,” said Jenny Carswell a senior in psychology and Italian. “Studying abroad is an opportunity I think every student should take advantage of. It was a great chance to use the language I had learned, but I would still have gone even if I wasn’t studying Italian. It was such an opportunity for personal growth and I met so many new people. I have some fantastic memories and the cost wasn’t even that bad.”

Auburn offers study abroad options all over the world, and opportunities are not limited to foreign language majors. Every department on Auburn’s campus has international programs available.

“The foreign language department offers programs to Mexico, Spain, Germany, France, Italy and Austria,” said Robert Weigel, chair of the department of foreign language and literature, “but students can also apply through the Office of International Education or surf the web. Students are welcome to go abroad with any program they find as long as Auburn signs off on it.”

Carla Mitchell, a math education major, said, “I didn’t think I had any more hope for studying abroad because I pretty much have all my basics and there aren’t many education classes you can take overseas, but I learned I can actually do my internship abroad.”

Auburn offers both 4-week summer sessions and 16-week fall and spring semesters abroad. Students are encouraged to take classes in their chosen field as well as language or culture classes for the country or countries they are visiting.

Studying abroad is a beneficial experience for both personal and educational growth and students should know the programs available to them.

“Studying abroad is a great resume packer,” said Deborah Weiss, assistant director of the Office of International Education. “It shows flexibility and maturity and the ability to be comfortable in other settings and around different people.”

Students interested in studying internationally should start researching and planning well in advance.

“Students should begin preparing about a year before they want to leave. This allows students to look into all financial aid and scholarships available,” Weiss said. “If a student says they can’t afford to study abroad they haven’t talked to us, but we need to have time to get the money they need.”

However, the actual cost for many of the programs is fairly comparable to spending the semester taking classes in Auburn with the addition of airfare. In fact, for some out of state students, taking a semester to study abroad may actually be cheaper than staying in Auburn.

“Studying abroad is such a great opportunity,” said Weiss, “and with all the different options available to students the world truly is Auburn’s campus.”