Getting Ready for 16 Weeks in London!
My name is Candace, I am 24 years old, and in the Graduate Social Work program. I have always wanted to study abroad but the opportunity never came up. It was not until orientation that I was able to see myself leaving the states. I wanted to go to a diverse city where I could be submersed in different cultures and London has always been on my bucket list. When I approached Debra Nelson-Gardell, there were no programs that included...
Africa Awaits
“A ship is always safe at shore, but that’s not what it’s built for.” -Albert Einstein I have officially committed to my Spring 2019 field placement in Ghana, West Africa. You would not even begin to believe the emotions I am trying to contain. I go from overly excited and ready to fearful and sad to be leaving my friends and family. Luckily, I have a great desire to serve and a support system that has helped...
The HIGHEST HIGHS and the lowest lows
There is no doubt that there are highs and lows when studying abroad. One minute, you can be having an amazing conversation with a Ghanaian, the next, someone may be trying to talk to you and they get frustrated because you cannot understand them. You can have a fantastic day at work, but get stuck in traffic on a trotro that is filled to compacity; no breathing room, no air condition, and the sun beaming directly down on you. A month...
And off she went, to change the world
The day before I left to start this amazing journey, I felt as if my heart would explode with all of these emotions that I couldn’t express. I was excited to experience a different culture, I was excited to meet my host family. However, I was also nervous about the unknown. I didn’t know what my field placement would be like, I didn’t know what my routine would be like, and I was practicing social work for the first time! One mistake...
“Welcome back! Welcome home!”
After almost a whole day of flying, I was just hours away from landing in Accra. During different times of the flight I came across others who asked me questions out of curiosity. Where are you from? How many times have you been to Ghana? What are you doing here? Was it that obvious that I was not from Ghana? Did I really stick out like a sore thumb? Either way, each time I was eager to repeat my entire explanation of how I ended up...
A Journey I’ve Been Waiting To Experience For A Year!
What do you do when you finally get to begin the journey of your dreams after waiting for a year? You take a leap of faith, double check that you’ve packed everything, and brace your self for an unforgettable experience. Doing my social work field practicum internationally was something that I knew I wanted to do from the moment I learned about it my sophomore year. While it may have seemed like something that was very extreme,...