SMU gives students the opportunity to travel and experience many different countries around the world. SMU Abroad offers semester-long programs in more than 44 countries, and also offers 20 summer programs. Students have been all over the world, from Paris, France to Sydney, Australia. Some students shared their favorite memories from countries they’ve visited through SMU Abroad.
Sophomore Maggie Manning spent the summer of 2017 in Paris. Manning said that her favorite experience during her time there was when she went to the city’s iconic Eiffel Tower.
“I had never been to Paris before so my favorite memory was probably seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time or going to Versailles with McKenzie Wade for the day,” Manning said.
Megan King is a current junior at SMU who studied in Madrid for the summer of 2016. She loved exploring Spain.
“My favorite memory was going to a Michelin Star rated restaurant in San Sebastián,” King said. “I also enjoyed the gorgeous scenery.”
Emma Lewis attended the SMU-in-Italy summer program, where she got to explore many different cities in the country. Her favorite memory was when she visited Mass Lubrense, Italy. A big group of students in the program rented out a villa on the coast overlooking the ocean with a view of Capri.
“The owner of the villa and his 12-year-old son took us sailing around the island of Capri for hours. We jumped off rocks, snorkeled, explored caves, sunbathed while enjoying our favorite Orvieto Classico white wine, and even enjoyed a delicious lunch in one of the very colorful towns,” Lewis said. “It was a surreal and unforgettable weekend, all for the price of staying one night at the Lumen.”
SMU junior Lucenti did a semester abroad in Sydney, Australia at the IES University of Sydney. Since Lucenti was gone for the fall semester, she was able to experience an Australian spring break.
“I went on this 10 day trip during our spring with like 60 other study abroad kids,” Lucenti said. “We went up the East Coast of Australia and it was literally the best 10 days of my life.”
Lucie Prewitt, a business major, attended the London Business Internship program during the summer of 2017. She took the finance class and did an internship. Prewitt loved going to different countries over her weekends there.
“My favorite memory was definitely doing a Vespa tour in Rome,” Prewitt said.
Emily Rule spent summer of 2017 in London doing the SMU-in-London communications program, where she got to study advertising. She enjoyed her experience in London and was happy the classes she took allowed her to explore the city.
“I loved studying in London, there is so much history,” Rule said.
Lauren Smart, SMU alumni and current Professor of Practice in SMU’s Division of Journalism, went on the SMU-in-Germany trip about 10 years ago. She travelled to major cities like Munich and Berlin, but she preferred getting to know the small town she was staying in.
“My favorite part of the trip was getting to know the small town of Weimar, where we were living,” Smart said. “I was learning German on the trip, which I had to use every day to order coffee or a sandwich.”