“In a few important ways, Morocco did not feel especially foreign to me. It is a Muslim country, and I am a Muslim. It is largely an Arabic-speaking country, and I speak enough Arabic to navigate comfortably.”
“To me, learning languages is a way of showing respect, and it also allows me to access nuances of culture that would otherwise remain opaque.”
“When conversing with my small group, I was given the opportunity to take a deeper dive into what authentic Hong Kong life is like.”
"Coming to Amman, I knew that gender dynamics would be more pronounced in a Muslim country, but was surprised by the extent of the divide."
“¿Oceanía es un continente? I thought, feeling the puzzlement show on my face."
"In any foreign country, speaking to locals in their native language will instantly win you some favor; however, this is especially true in Hungary."
“Ever since I was little, I have wanted to go to Spain,” says Ashley Land '16, a media studies major studying in Salamanca, Spain, through the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES) program.
Marianna Heckendorn '16, an international relations/French major, chose to study in Yaoundé, Cameroon, to complement her IR focus on African politics.
Danielle Schickele '16 was looking for an education that was “well regarded and also completely different from Pomona,” so she took her studies to the highlands of Scotland.
"Meeting locals in Salamanca is made incredibly easy by the IES program and the community of Salamanca, whether you like to meet people through sports, bars, or classes."