Tag Archives: Academic year

Julieta Mendiola

This is me and 2 of my best friends I made in my year abroad. Meeting them was the best gift that my Granada experience gave me (this was taken at our final program dinner – Alhambra ft. in the back)

NAME: Julieta Mendiola

MAJOR: Child and Adolescent Development

PROGRAM: CSU IP- Granada Spain – Academic year 2024-2025

EMAIL: julieta.mendiola@sjsu.edu

BIO:

Hi my name is Julieta Mendiola and am majoring in child development, pursuing a minor in psychology, as well as a minor in deaf studies. I come from a Latino family (both parents are from Mexico and raised me and my 2 siblings with their Mexican culture, traditions, and heritage). I am bilingual in English and Spanish and proficient in American Sign Language. I did competitive artistic gymnastics for 19 years of my life and am now 23 and would say that it has shaped me into the person I am today. I was on the D1 gymnastics team here at SJSU for my first 3 years of college and went through a lot of growth and challenges in that year. I had visited Europe before with my family, but really was left with an itch to continue exploring (and this time on my own). I really wanted to be in a new environment and have the opportunity to meet people from around the world and just widen my perspective on a lot of different things. I had also never been fully alone and wanted to experience that also was really curious on exploring how child development differs between location, environment, and cultures and learned a lot from all the different cultures and groups of people I got to meet, and as well as from my 2 internships I got to do while studying in Granada. I was nervous to commit to the decision of studying abroad in Spain because it was a big change, full of a lot of unknown factors, and also really far away from home/family, and I was actively deciding to leave my current life here in California (when I felt like everything in most aspects of my life at home was very aligned and going well and also could foresee some planned upcoming great opportunities for me that I would not get to pursue in the academic year 2024- 2025 if I did decide to study abroad). But, making the decision to study abroad has been one of/if not the best decision of my life so far.

GOALS: What were your goals for studying abroad?

I wanted to be in a new environment away from all my past commitments, social groups, and comfort and learn to live with myself and get to know myself as well as learn to put me and my needs first and learn what that feels like. Another goal was to open and widen my perspective through meeting people from around the world and immersing myself in a new culture as well as traveling to explore other countries. I also wanted to do school in another country as well as learn about Spanish history and culture (this was interesting to me since I am Mexican and was going to an environment/country that was the one that conquered Mexico many years ago). I also wanted to try a lot of new things as much as possible.

 PERSONAL GROWTH: What was the biggest impact that your study abroad experience had on you?

 ACADEMICS: How would you describe your academic experience abroad? While abroad, I took a mixture of courses. I took some upper division GE’s that I needed for graduation that really interested me. I did an internship course I needed for service hours (I loved it so much that I ended up doing another one in the spring semester). One was being a English language TA for a variety of ages in a religious, private elementary school in Granada (that was almost completely homogenous with Spanish students). The second semester, I did a volunteering internship in an after school program in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Granada and had such a 180 flip experience with the population of students I had.  I took cool courses like Flamenco culture, Spanish Sign language, Spanish music, writing texts in Spanish,

 CAREER: What skills did you learn / sharpen during your study abroad experience? I feel like my street smarts improved, my social skills, my self-care capabilities, I feel like I got braver to try new things, I also feel like my traveling skills improved so much and my instincts in dangerous situations improved.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: How has your immersion impacted your perspectives on the world?

One of my biggest takeaways was seeing how many versions of “normal” exist in the world and that I really can never ever judge anyone because of the immense diversity of perspectives, cultures, environments, thought processes that just exist. It’s increased my empathy, my ability to have an open-mind as well as being patient and willing to hear many different perspectives. Also the idea that assumptions tend to be harmful and wrong most of the time. The best thing we can do is try new things with an open-mind because you just never know what something really is like until you experience it and then get to form your own opinion. It also widened my perspective on the idea of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd world countries and how different people can be living and also maybe never get the opportunity to leave the country they’re in (and seeing how their perspective on the world looks like without having left their own country is really interesting.) There is just so much to explore and I can’t really describe it best in words but just really engrained the idea of “never judge a book by it’s cover” and I believe that this experience is so rewarding and I wish it could be something everyone could experience once in their life. It made me reflect on my life a lot and what felt like a big deal and seeing what I used to feel like really defined me (like clubs I was a part of, or certain friend groups I was with ) and how certain parts of my life felt so big…but then after being abroad it just widened my perspective on so many levels.

FUTURE: How has study abroad prepared you for your future? I feel like now moving somewhere new or trying something new, doesn’t seem as scary and excites me more with the possibilities that may come from it. It also had made me reevaluate future goals that I have and where I want to go searching/pursuing them. I learned so much from my classes there as well as from all my interactions there too.

TIPS: What advice would you give to future Global Spartans? It’s going to seem new, scary, and unknown but you will surprise yourself with your ability to adapt and make the best out of every situation. Going there and actually living it yourself gives you a new perspective that is hard to put into words but will change the way you look at everything.

Vireak Nop

My dorm’s very own Halloween costume party!

NAME: Vireak Nop

MAJOR: English/Professional and Technical Writing

PROGRAM: SJSU Exchange – Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan – Academic year 2024 – 2025

EMAIL: brandon.nop@sjsu.edu

BIO:

Hello! My name is Vireak, but I also go by Vir (read like Sir but with a V). I’m an English major plus Japanese language minor who had the opportunity to study abroad for the past year. As for why I decided to go through with this experience? There’s a lot to say, and it’s heavily nuanced. But, if I had to keep things brief–it was to challenge myself in both academic, personal, and cultural ways. Of course, I want to immerse myself in the language, culture, and REALLY try to grasp the language in its natural environment. At the same time, it would be my first experience living alone and navigating my daily life by my own accord. I believe I got a lot more out of my experience aside from just academics.

GOALS: What were your goals for studying abroad?

Academically, I wanted to improve my Japanese and quickly get to a conversational level. I feel satisfied with the point I had reached after my Spring semester there, but I am always looking forward to learning! For my personal goals, I wanted to see how I would hold up living independently. Because I didn’t have my parents physically with me, I was able to further develop basic skills like cooking, navigation, and trash management. It also let me experience living with peers similar in age to me, and seeing what I do and do not tolerate or compromise on when it comes to living with housemates. I learned a lot about myself while living abroad.

 PERSONAL GROWTH: What was the biggest impact that your study abroad experience had on you?

Living in Japan for almost a full year, I think the biggest change for me was that I began to grow an appreciation for the mundane. The everyday life that no one really thinks about, at least here in America. Maybe it’s a form of romanticization, but I was appreciating the short walks to school, the small kitchen talks, and the common bus or train ride. Not everything in life has to be something grand or spectacular, it can be something small that just feels nice. Like waking up to a pleasant morning breeze. I felt as if I could truly live in the present without stressing about the future, unlike how I was living back home. I truly understood what it meant to be “living your 20s” for the first time.

 ACADEMICS: How would you describe your academic experience abroad?

When it comes to taking courses abroad, it is expected to put in more effort on my end since the classes are not in my native language. While it definitely did take an initial adjusting period, I ended up being able to find my balance shortly after. Since I only lived a 10 minute walk away from the campus, I would do self-studying in the dorms and then put it into practice immediately with peers. The experience made me realize I needed to take the initiative more, so I am now seeing aspects of my SJSU life that are benefitting from taking that first step. For example, emailing a professor in advance to ask some questions I have, or reaching out to potential outgoing-abroad students who are too hesitant to start that conversation. I used to be in that same position, so I feel accomplished that I finally overcame my own hesitancy and have been able to apply it to SJSU and daily life.

 CAREER: What skills did you learn / sharpen during your study abroad experience?

Aside from learning to be the one who takes that first step, I have further sharpened a skill of mine that is vital in Japan: reading the room, or “reading the air” as the Japanese equivalent would say. I find that it has made me more keen of my surroundings, and in turn has made me a bit more empathetic. It’s a skill that has helped tremendously in my personal life, and helped me gain a deeper appreciation for my parents and all they have done.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: How has your immersion impacted your perspectives on the world? Since I’m interacting with both native students in Japan, and exchange students from around the world: I learn and experience a ton of differences in how we think and interact, but I also see just how much we also have in common with each other. Growing up in San Jose, I have the privilege to have grown up in a primarily Vietnamese American community and perhaps get too comfortable with it. As a result, my knowledge and understanding of other cultural backgrounds is pretty surface level. Now, I feel as if my mind and eyes have both been open to the richness and beauty that makes our world so diverse.

FUTURE: How has study abroad prepared you for your future? Studying abroad gave me a glimpse into a new road I could potentially follow. While my major and minor degree might not necessarily be connected, I’ve been looking into ways I could potentially utilize both of the skillsets I’ve learned in the pathway towards both degrees. Even if we don’t think about it in terms of the type of job I could get: it taught me skills that allow for me to be more flexible.

TIPS: What advice would you give to future Global Spartans?

As cliche as it sounds: Just do it! If I hesitated any longer, I would have gone through my life with so many regrets. Of course, you’ll have regrets as your abroad program comes to an end, but it’s an experience you can only have now! So just do it! The SJSU Study Abroad department can answer any questions you have, and there’s plenty of students who are probably wondering the same things as you!
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​​​​​​​Also, knowing some practical skills wouldn’t hurt. Know how to say/ask a few things in the language of the country you’re going to, pick up some cooking skills, and most importantly: make friends!