Arcadia England

Here at the London Center we love to hear from our alumni, especially when they have had a great time with us. This is exactly what happened when we got in touch with Stephanie Feinburg. Stephanie was with us on the FYSAE program in Spring 13 and as you read below, she had a great time.

I honestly could not be more thankful for my experience abroad in London. I remember my parents telling me that I was crazy for wanting to go abroad my first year. I bought "London for Dummies" off of Amazon, and would tell them a new fact about London daily. Finally, they let me go. Little did I know, they agreed to the most life changing experience I could ever imagine. My parents even came to visit me towards the end of my journey and noticed such a huge change in my self confidence and independence. Now, they would recommend studying abroad and FYSAE to anyone. 

My most fond memories of being abroad include my home stay with Host UK, traveling to Paris and Scotland, taking classes taught by British professors, visiting homeless shelters for a project, and raising $600 for Red Nose Day. I can't forget my favorite places and experiences in London - the Tower Bridge's lights at night, Greenwich's live music, the million milkshake choices from Hamley's, shopping sprees at Primark, the giant pillow fight in Trafalgar Square, Saint Patrick's Day and Chinese New Year parades, and of course, the endless cups of tea.

I thought that when I got back to the United States, I would be done with studying abroad; I thought I already had my experience. However, the travel bug is permanently in me. In the fall of 2014, I will be studying abroad at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Not only that, but I will intern at a non-profit international organization, called BuildaBridge.  BuildaBridge works with people living in trauma around the world and uses art as a form of healing. I plan on continuing work with non-profits, and one day become a Social Worker working with the homeless population. I have even applied to be part of Arcadia's Peace Corps Prep Program. My dream is to join the Peace Corps after graduating from Arcadia.  I credit all my passions to my experiences abroad.

London not only had an impact on my dreams in life, but it had a life changing emotional impact. I have struggled with anxiety and depression my whole life. Ever since I came back from London, I tell people that studying abroad did more for me than any type of medication of counseling.