Grand homecoming: students return from abroad

At Davidson, it's popular for students to travel abroad during the fall semester of their junior year. That makes for an exciting spring semester each year as campus welcomes back many students from their time away. Juniors are excited to share stories of their time in other countries where they spent their semester learning and perfecting a foreign language, conducting field research or exploring new cultures.

Back in the familiar environment of Davidson, returning students reflect on the challenges and benefits of studying abroad. For Blake Candler '13, who studied in Tours, France, and Roxana Boyd '13, who studied in Granada, Spain, living with host families helped ease the process of cultural assimilation.

"The best part of my experience has been my incredible host family. They have been so welcoming and kind to me. I feel so comfortable around them that I actually feel like a member of their family," Candler said

For Boyd, moving into a home stay felt challenging at first, but ultimately rewarding. The junior English major was "sad to say goodbye and may have even shed a tear or two" by the end of the semester.

Biology major Clare Sanders '13 managed to form her own family with her classmates in the Australian rainforest. Her program through the School for Field Studies brought together 23 students from schools across the country, including two Davidson classmates.

Every Davidson student knows how to squeeze in a 10-minute meal at the union between meetings and studying, but both Boyd and Candler noted that their time in Europe forced them to break old habits.

"The pace of life is slowed down here," Candler said. "Meals here can last for 2-3 hours. The food and discussions are great. The French seem to have nicely established a society with an emphasis on individuality while still maintaining a strong sense of collectivity."

In Granada, Boyd struggled to shift from the busy Davidson routine to a Spanish schedule built around afternoon siestas and nights that last until 7 a.m.

"Needless to say, this took some major adjusting and it's definitely going to take awhile to get used to the Davidson routine again," she said.

In addition to adjusting to new routines, juniors got to attend class on campuses that vary drastically from our familiar Davidson home. In Granada, Boyd went to school alongside 50,000 students, while Sanders walked a dirt path each day to her classroom in the middle of the rainforest.  Political science major Supriya Wadhwa '13, left behind the tiny town of Davidson for the massive city of Beijing, China.

From differences in language, size, culture, and social life, students got the chance to truly step outside their comfort zones. The spring semester brings new challenges as students readjust to the Davidson lifestyle.

"I was apprehensive [to return to Davidson].  I had had this amazing experience and learned a lot about what I wanted to do and be and was nervous that returning to Davidson would mean going back to a place that already had a placed carved out for me that I wouldn't necessarily fit into anymore," Sanders explained.

But something all the returning juniors seem to have in common is their excitement to be back, with "a new outlook on just about everything," as Boyd put it.

Boyd noted that her time in Granada led to a new global perspective. "[My Spanish exchange parter] invited me over to her apartment for dinner one night for some homemade food and I met all of her friends who were from Germany, France, England, Italy and Spain. It was just one night, but I've never felt so connected to the rest of the world."

Wadhwa expressed excitement to resume rigorous courses with Davidson professors after a semester of classes abroad. Sanders agreed that returning to the classroom is the most exciting thing about being back.

For Candler, the decision to study abroad became a life-changing choice. Formerly a CIS Environmental Ethics major, he ran into visa issues while planning for a year abroad in Switzerland and France.

"Since I knew spending the year abroad was my priority, I quickly decided to switch to be a French major and stay in France for the entire year. I'm thrilled to have this amazing opportunity."

Though Candler returned to the United States for a month over winter break, he is now back in France for the spring semester. He won't be on campus with his classmates this semester, but he refuses to miss out completely on spring in Davidson.

"We are buying Spring Frolics tank tops to celebrate in France," he said.