Study Abroad Photo Contest 2016

 

 

 

Have great pictures you took while studying abroad through NIU? Our 2016 Study Abroad Photo Contest is the contest for you! Open to all NIU students, or past NIU student, who have participated in any study abroad program through NIU in the past 3 years! 

Here are the details:

1. Deadline for submissions: WEDNESDAY , SEPTEMBER 21ST
2. E-mail your four (4 maximum, limit 1 per category) best photos from your study abroad experience to Kristen at kroenfanz1@niu.edu (please note that this is my e-mail inbox, so send your photos in separate e-mails if they are large files). Please use the phrase “Photo Contest” in the subject line of your e-mail. You may also drop off a CD or bring the files into the office on a flash drive if you prefer.
3. Please indicate which of your photos is being submitted for which category.  Please only submit one photo per category, but you do not have to submit a photo to each category.  The four categories for this year’s photo contest are:
• Capture the Culture (send us your photos depicting scenes of local people, pastimes, and culture)
• Let’s Get Lost (send us your photos depicting scenes of cities and nature)
• Social Media (send us your photos from Instagram, #squadgoals, #selfie, #niustudyabroad, etc.)
• Put the Study in Study Abroad (send us your photos illustrating your academic experience abroad)
4. Please include photo captions/titles so we can identify what is being seen in the photo! You can do this in your e-mail, use them as your file names, or send us a separate Word document file.
5. People attending the Study Abroad Fair will vote on your photos. The photo with the largest number of votes in each category will be chosen as the winner! We will notify you by e-mail if you have won, so you can come to the Study Abroad Office to pick up your prize.  The winner of each photo category will receive their winning photo printed on canvas as a prize!
6. All photos entered become property of the NIU Study Abroad Office. By entering the contest, you agree that we may use your photos on our web site, print advertising, flyers, posters, handouts, PowerPoint presentations, or any other use we deem appropriate. The Study Abroad Office will identify the person who submitted any photo when it is used.
7. Only submit original photographs that were taken by you. Do not submit other people’s photographs. 
8. If you have any questions, please call the NIU Study Abroad Office at 815-753-0700.

 

Thank you and good luck!

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Student Bloggers: Prepping for Travel

We have 3 student bloggers who are preparing to start their amazing study abroad journey in Moscow, Russia.  Eli, Chynna, and Jacquelyn are making their final preparations and saying their final goodbyes before they leave in about a week. Check out what each of them have to say as they pack up and get ready to leave for their new adventures! Make sure to subscribe to our blog to stay up to date with each of our student bloggers, and to follow them along on their new journeys.

Eli: moscowrussiaeli.blogspot.com/

Chynna: moscowrussiachynna.blogspot.com/

Jaquelyn: moscowrussiajaquelyn.blogspot.com/

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Under Construction!

 

 

We are updating our blog layout! 

Please excuse any issues or inconsistencies you may notice. 

Thank you!

 

 

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Student Bloggers

Happy Monday!  And welcome back to campus, NIU Huskies!

This semester, we have students studying abroad in Australia, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, Scotland, and South Korea!

We will have three bloggers from our Theatre and Performance Studies program at the Moscow Art Theatre in Russia!  Every student's perspective is unique, so definitely check out their blogs starting in a few weeks!  We hope to have more bloggers from around the world this semester as well.

Stay tuned on Blogger, Instagram (@niustudyabroad), Twitter (@NIUStudyAbroad), Facebook, and YouTube!

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Upcoming Study Abroad Fair!

Please join us on Thursday, September 29th for the 24th Annual Study Abroad Fair! 

Holmes Student Center, Duke Ellington Ballroom

10:00-3:00

Photo contest, program brochures, give-aways, and more!

 

 
 

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Life Abroad (Some of Our Favorite Links)

In the Study Abroad Office, Matador Network is one of our favorite sites to browse for interesting study abroad, travel, and culture related articles and resources.  Check out the ones below that we read today!

11 things you'll get addicted to living in Italy...
http://matadornetwork.com/life/11-things-youll-get-addicted-living-italy/

17 side effects I've had as an American living in Germany...
http://matadornetwork.com/life/17-side-effects-ive-american-living-germany/

A traveler's advice to the class of 2016...
http://matadornetwork.com/notebook/travelers-advice-class-2016/

10 things that happen when you move to Madrid...
http://matadornetwork.com/life/10-things-happen-move-madrid/

20 women instagrammers that will stoke your wanderlust...
http://matadornetwork.com/pulse/20-women-instagrammers-will-stoke-wanderlust/

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The Transformative Nature of Travel

Most students come home from their study abroad program feeling a little different...or really different.  About themselves.  About their goals.  About life.  It's inevitable.  When you are studying abroad, or traveling in general, you are exposed to new people, new ideas, and new ways of living that are difficult to leave behind.  But what do you do when you return home?  Do you adopt the habits and philosophies that guided your life abroad?  Or do you return slowly to your old ways of being?  There is no right answer.  And it is not the same for everyone.

When I returned from my study abroad program in Spain, I had a year's worth of experiences that I wanted to incorporate into my life at home.  I told myself that I would walk more (either for pleasure or transportation, since I walked everywhere in Salamanca), that I would cook the foods that my host mom made (because the food was honestly one of the best parts of the experience), and that I would move a little slower and soak up every moment (because life does move a lot slower over there).  Now, a few years after coming home and nearing the end of graduate school, I drive almost everywhere, the closest I get to cooking Spanish food is making sangria, and my life seems to be moving faster than ever before.  But I love my life, and my study abroad experience has had an impact on me in so many ways over the past four years.

I save money with my next adventure in mind; I read travel journals; I buy every special issue of Nat Geo (like 100 Most Beautiful Places, Wonders of the World, 125 Years of Great Explorations); I page through guidebooks and peruse travel blogs; I work in the NIU Study Abroad Office; my walls are covered with pictures and maps; I try to explore this country as much as I want to explore countries abroad.  The list could go on and on, not to mention how my worldview has been widened and diversified since studying abroad.  The independent travel I have done since has only added to this.

So, how will you embrace the lingering effects of your study abroad experience?  How will you foster that travel-bug, wanderlust-fueled, roaming adventurer's spirit you had while you were away?  It's up to you.

Happy Trails,
Kristen

Note:  Today, I was inspired by the essay below (written by Robert Moor and published on BuzzFeed): 
https://www.buzzfeed.com/robertmoor/heres-what-happens-to-your-body-when-you-hike-the-appalachia?utm_term=.qsLMGJn0g#.ujEm93XM6     

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Almost a Year of Blogging!

Hello!

Nearly a year after beginning this NIU Study Abroad blog, we have been so impressed by and excited about the contributions that our students have made to this project.  We encourage everyone to continue viewing past blogs, reading and commenting on current blogs, and supporting what we believe is an amazing opportunity for students to share their study abroad experiences with the world. 

Over this next year and beyond, it is our hope that we will consistently update our home blog page with interesting articles, travel tips and facts, photos, Study Abroad Office information, and various deadlines.  Also, be on the lookout for some of our own Study Abroad Office staff to make blog contributions about our own recent or upcoming travels! 

We have a passion for studying abroad and we hope that this blog is a way for our students to write about the wonderful experiences they have had around the world.

Keep in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest!

Stay tuned!  Go Huskies!

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Welcome!

Hello Readers!

Northern Illinois University Study Abroad Office is excited to present our new blog! Each semester there are several NIU study abroad students that are chosen to blog about their study abroad experience. Our students blog about their personal experiences while they immerse into foreign cultures while studying at their international host university.

Students that are interested in studying abroad will benefit from reading the blogs to learn about the cultural and learning exchange that is involved in a study abroad program. The blogs are a personal reflection of what it is like to study abroad where everything is new and exciting! Many students will discuss their personal reasons for choosing the program that they are enrolled in, and what kind of research they did to support their choices.

We enthusiastically encourage all to comment on our students’ blogs, as this is an engaging way to learn about the study abroad experience! For more information visit our NIU Study Abroad Website and to stay posted on upcoming events on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

    

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