Alumni , St. Catherine University
Dreams are beautiful but when they come true; it’s WOW. Life after Global UGRAD lighted my path. The experience provided the sight for understanding and analyzing things more deeply and logically. Global UGRAD for me was an enormous experience; the experience where one interacts with people of all ages, cultures, religions, ethnicities and understands how we all are same and ONE. …
Alumni , Humboldt State University , Latin America and the Caribbean , Mozambique , Sub-Saharan Africa , Venezuala
The deadline for colleges and universities to apply to World Learning to host students during the 2017-18 academic year is fast approaching! To all colleges and universities interested in partnering with us, please have your application submitted by February 24, 2017. To apply, please follow this link. Once you have registered at the link, you will receive an email with a …
East Asia and the Pacific , Juniata College , Thailand
Tongchai Saelee is a Global UGRAD participant from Thailand. He com pleted a semester of English Language Training at Juniata College this fall and began studying pre-nursing this spring. Chai has lived with his grandparents in the Hmong community of Thailand ever since his parents moved to Alaska when he was a child. Through the years, he has only been able …
Alumni , Bahrain , Middle East and North Africa , Minnesota State University - Mankato
Mohammed Al Shammari (Bahrain), Minnesota State University – Mankato In December 2015, I ended a big chapter in my life at an organization that I volunteered at for 3 and a half consecutive years, and was looking to jump at the next opportunity to grow and explore myself as well as the world around me. That was when I applied for the …
Alumni , Armenia , Eurasia , Mississippi State University
I received my UGRAD scholarship when the experiences of my early youth were deeply engraved in my world view: the earthquake of 1988, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the political unrest in the Caucasus, food shortages and blockades, and others had taught me to live within the limits of the reality and survive the today. Life at Mississippi State …
Alumni , Central Asia , Kyrgyzstan , Maryville College
Sezim Altynbek Kyzy, Kyrgyzstan, Maryville College Flexibility is the most proper adjective to define every finalist of Global UGRAD. From the first day at Maryville College, I was super curious about college life and I did my best to be active. During the third week there, I found out that the Global Citizenship Organization …
Central Asia , East Asia and the Pacific , Experiencing America , Juniata College , Latin America and the Caribbean , Panama , Tajikistan , Thailand , Troy University , University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Of the 252 2016-17 Global UGRAD students, 33 remained in the United States over the winter holiday break at their host universities. Some stayed on campus and took the opportunity to volunteer in their host communities. For others, the break was an opportunity to travel to other cities and to visit family and/or friends not on campus. Here is a …
Grand Valley State University , Lewis-Clark State College
The fall semester Global UGRAD participants had the opportunity to watch the debates, follow the election cycle, and watch the votes come in on November 8th, 2016. At Lewis-Clark State College in Idaho, students watched the election day coverage with a local congressman. Another student wrote, “Being an aspiring political journalist, it feels so awesome to be given the ‘front row …
Alumni , American University , Latin America and the Caribbean , Venezuala
Emmanuel Davalillo Hidalgo, Global UGRAD 2013-2014, Venezuela After heading back home and finishing my degree in Political Science at the Universidad del Zulia in western Venezuela, I faced that burning question so many of us recent graduates face: “Well… Now what?” Only one thing seemed certain: I was not done learning. I first discovered the field of peace and conflict …
Albania , Community Service , Eurasia , Kansas State University
Erisa Murati, Albania, Kansas State University My last but most significant volunteering experience was on Saturday, December 3rd at the Lighthouse Clothes Closet and Food Pantry center, which offers free clothes and food packages for people in need. My responsibilities there were almost the same as the ones at Encore Shop, organizing food on the shelves, cleaning the food pantry, checking and picking up …