The Office for Education Abroad will be hosting its annual Global Learning Expo on Wednesday, displaying hundreds of programs spanning over 60 countries in the Breslin Center.
The 40th annual expo will run from 1-5 p.m. Students can talk to program directors, representatives from partner institutions, former participants and academic advisers.
The expo will feature several kinds of programs like study, research, internships and service-learning.
The communications Manager for the Office for Education Abroad, Cheryl Benner, said it's an all-in-one location where students can find information for programs and talk to those involved in person, rather than searching online.
"It’s just a little more fun," Benner said. "We have lots of people from all over the world that are representing our partner institutions."
Tables are grouped by college, so students can look for programs tailored to their specific majors, Benner said. Attendees can explore any college’s tables however, and students always have the option to take integrative studies or elective programs.
"Each table does its own thing," Benner said.
Tables have displays that range in a variety of things featured, she said. Some have photos or videos while others may have food from abroad. Some ecology programs will even display living organisms like frogs.
For those apprehensive about studying abroad due to financial constraints, the event also has a table with a representative from the Office of Financial Aid to answer questions and walk people through the process of applying, she said.
Student volunteers like Norma Makki, a junior studying supply chain management who works as a student adviser in the Office for Education Abroad, will also be there to help students.
Makki studied in Athens, Greece in the summer of 2023 under the business sustainability ethics program.
She said she wanted to study abroad partly to gain a sense of independence by exploring under the lens of only herself, and not her parents or friends from home.
Abroad, she said people don’t have easy access to their friends and family.
"If something happens, you’ve got to figure it out on the spot and on your own," Makki said.
When she moved to East Lansing, she thought being in college was true independence, she said. However, she quickly realized how easy it was to contact her community in Dearborn, where she is originally from. Traveling abroad made her realize what independence actually meant.
"It made me rethink how I define independence," she said.
Makki said the program also made her more open with putting herself in uncomfortable situations where she might not know anyone or be unfamiliar with where she is.
"I always had this fear that I can't go to a club on my own unless I know someone there," she said.
Those experiences made her rethink that mentality.
However, finances can make people reluctant to take those opportunities, she said. The financial side of a program is one of the first things people consider when thinking about studying abroad.
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"Originally, that was something holding me back," Makki said.
When she was accepted to the program she thought she couldn’t afford it, and had to ask herself if it was worth it. She said she ended up deciding the pros outweighed the cons.
After using funds from her Pell Grant and Gilman scholarship, she was able to pay for the trip comfortably, she said.
"Reach out and consider all your resources, because there's so many that don't get utilized on campus and that lots of students don't know about," Makki said.
Benner said students can get more out of these programs outside of the credits and traveling they do.
"They're getting to connect with local people in different environments," Benner said. "They're getting more knowledge in their field. Sometimes they're learning a language."
