Experience Europe: 11 Days, 2 Countries, 1 Great Study Abroad Trip

The European Experiential Learning Program is an 11-day study abroad experience in Italy and Spain that runs during the break between spring and summer semesters (May 2- May 13, 2015). The program is open to any UC undergraduate student in any major, and the capacity for the course is 20 students.

The experiential learning program visits cultural and historical sites in Barcelona, Spain; and Milan and Torino in Italy, in addition to site visits to global corporations.

Cultural and historical site visits include:

• Barcelona: Barrier Gothic, Sagrada Familia, FC Barcelona Futbol game, Magic Fountains
• Milan: Duomo,  Galleria
• Torino: Egyptian Museum, Automobile Museum, Eataly

Corporate site visits include:

Luxottica

,

BasicNet

and

General Cable

.

“Students have an opportunity to engage in self-learning and self-reflection, becoming more confident as learners. Students visit BasicNet, Luxottica and General Cable; meeting with executives and managers discussing business issues in a global economy. This is a strategic learning opportunity for  students as they are on-site and are able to interact with professionals in two different countries gaining insight and perspective,” stated Maureen Schomaker, assistant professor in the Division of Professional Practice and Experiential Learning (

ProPEL

) and faculty advisor for the experiential learning course.

Students enjoy the trip because of its broad range of activities that appeal to the diverse student group. According to Dan Champion,

CEAS

aerospace engineering student who participated in the experiential learning course last spring, the program offers a little bit of everything to students, so no one is out of their element and everyone is able to learn something new.

“This experience was incredible for me,” stated Champion. “We got to see amazing sites, from the Duomo in Milan and the Mole in Turin to Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. We also went on company site visits. … The company visits were the highlight of the trip and were incredibly informative.”

The 2014 group recommends the study abroad program to prospective students. They all agree that the trip was fun and exciting, and opened their eyes to the culturally diverse world in which we live.

Morgan Taylor,

DAAP

fashion design student expressed that having the opportunity to go to Europe on the study abroad trip was amazing.  “I could not have asked for a better group of people, advisors or locations – it was the epitome of a perfect trip for me. The cities we visited were absolutely beautiful, and the sites we saw were beyond breathtaking. … Torino, Milan and Barcelona were simply jaw-dropping. The history, architecture and meaning behind each of these places were something I had never experienced,” stated Morgan.

According to Paul Damschroder, DAAP Industrial Design student the trip was irreplaceable. “It is trips like these that make a student’s college career; it is an experience that can never be replaced.”

All students who complete the trip will earn a $300 block grant from UC International. Students also should check with their major programs to see if there is additional grant money available.

There will be an information session for students to learn more about the European Experiential Learning Program at 6 p.m. Nov. 12 in 731 Steger Student Life Center. The

application can be competed online

. Deadline to apply is Nov. 15.

To learn more, visit

UC ProPEL’s website

.

Any additional questions about the program can be directed to Cindy Damschroder, assistant professor of ProPEL,

cindy.damschroder@uc.edu

or Maureen Schomaker, assistant professor of ProPEL,

maureen.schomaker@uc.edu

.