Arcadia Australia

 We had the pleasure of having John Liberty, from Arcadia University take part in our Semester study abroad program in Townsville studying at James Cook University this past Spring. John had a fabulous semester and was very involved with the Arcadia co-curricular program. John has kindly shared his experience with us and provides some amazing insights for future students studying in Australia.

John Liberty

Over the course of just 19 weeks, I have been fortunate enough to live and learn in a way that others will most likely never get the opportunity to. My participation in a wide variety of experiences from international and domestic excursions to campus events has allowed me to think and react in a way that I would have never done otherwise. Despite the fact that I was not a part of a particular program or team over the course of my semester, my adaptability did not suffer. My mindset began to shift from the moment I boarded my first plane towards Australia, in Boston.

My semester abroad was my first overseas experience and my second time leaving the United States. By deciding to travel across the planet alone, I have gained the worldly experience of travel, and then some. Due to my Cystic Fibrosis, I traveled to JCU with a duffle bag full of various medications and devices that I would require over the course of the semester. Initially, I felt as though it was a daunting task to make it to my destination without any issues caused by what appeared to strangers as a bag of mysterious pills, however it proved to be nothing that I could not handle. Although I was used to being a self-sufficient adult, this was the first of my many new lessons on complete independence that I would soon learn this semester. Once I arrived and settled into JCU, I felt as though no length of time would ever be enough. Despite this initial euphoria, there was of course a few kinks along the way. This first of these came with my failed attempt at a scuba certification.

As a marine biology major, of course one of my biggest dreams is the dive the Great Barrier Reef. Upon my arrival at JCU, myself along with a few other students discovered a JCU market day sale on scuba certification off of Magnet Island. Without hesitation we all signed up and book our weekend. Anticipating something of this nature would come up, I previously got a written letter from my Cystic Fibrosis doctor stating that he is confident in my ability to dive despite my condition. However, upon my arrival at the dive shop I was informed that since I was not cleared by a Queensland physician my letter was not valid. Despite my disappointment, I attempted to get cleared at the JCU clinic but unfortunately they were booked out until after my semester was over. Typically, I try to make the best of every situation, but I will admit it was hard to see everyone else get certified and plan dives for the rest of the semester. With that being said, I knew there was nothing I could do that would change the situation and on the bright side this was my only real disappointment of the semester. To make matters even better our free excursion weekend included an amazing snorkeling trip to the Great Barrier Reef, thus ensuring I at least was able to see this incredible marine environment. This situation taught me that although things may not work out as planned, eventually they will sort themselves out. This goes hand and hand with the Aussie attitude of going with the flow and rolling with the punches that I have acquired this semester.  This mindset is just one of the many things that I have grown to appreciate over the course of my journey.

Going into this experience, I did not expect Australians to be too different from Americans. At the end of the day we are both very modern, first world, English speaking nations so how different could it be? This naïve way of thinking was dis-proven very quickly, and that is something I am very thankful for. Through living with Australians from all over the country I quickly noticed the cultural variation across the nation, just as the first year Aussie students did as well. Regardless of the state-to-state differences, the major Aussie culture always shinned through. My new mates taught me much of what I know of life in Australia from how to properly eat Vegemite to the rules of footie. My everyday experiences such as University Hall rugby games or themed nights at Uni Bar planted a deep cultural appreciation for Australia. Since this was (in my mind) my first real time away from the U.S. my newfound culture initially came as a shock since it was different than everything I’ve known my entire life. However, by being adaptable to my new environment (and having fun along the way) my eyes were opened the so many new aspects of life that now after the fact, I cannot picture living without. If there is one thing for sure it is that I will have reverse culture shock from having to wear shoes all the time again.

Of course, when traveling to a new place, there are going to be aspects that you might not necessarily enjoy or understand. For me, this came with the style of JCU classes. Back in the U.S. I purposely chose a university that was on the smaller side and practiced traditional classes rather than lecture with tutorials. The lecture style was initially a shock for me and continued to present a challenge for the duration of the semester. I was certainly open to embracing this unfamiliar system, however it was surely difficult to be just one in a sea of students as opposed to a student that a professor personally knows. Through determination to succeed, I feel as though I was able to put in the work required to adjust. Although I was outside of my comfort zone, I have no regrets for choosing JCU. In the end, by learning how to adjust to big lecture and a more independent, self-disciplined style of learning I am a more well-rounded student. I have no doubt that these skills will become useful because after all there is no such thing as a comfort zone in the “real world”.

My last big learning experience came from what was right in front of me, my fellow Americans. Since the beginning of orientation, I was able to make great relationships with many of the other Arcadia students, and the other Americans at Uni were no exception. Initially I felt guilty coming across the world and making the strongest connections with people from my home country, however I have now grown to ask myself “Why is that a bad thing?”. Although I will cherish the memories and friendships made with my Aussies, I feel as though my time was still well spend will Americans. At the end of the day, my Aussie friends were not too keen on traveling to a new corner of the country every weekend, so my trips were almost always with Americans. As a result of these adventures our bonds grew stronger and I feel as though these friendships will surely carry on for years to come. After several months of these endeavors, I learned that it is okay that some of my closest friends from this semester are American, because in the end they are people that I still would never have met otherwise. Overall, by the end of my time at JCU I was thankful for everyone that I had met since February, from Americans to Aussies and everyone in between.

As I travel back to the United States, I could not have asked for anything more out of this semester. I have gained irreplaceable experience/ skills on diverse aspects including the strength to travel solo, seeing the best in the face of challenge, and vast cultural appreciation. If one thing is for sure, it is that I am not saying goodbye to Australia, I am saying see you later.