In December, five UNH students were awarded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships to fund their study abroad trips this semester. This highly competitive national program offers awards of up to $5,000 per student for undergraduate study abroad and was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. Scholarships are awarded to U.S. undergraduate students who receive Federal Pell Grant funding at a two-year or four-year college or university.
Two of the five UNH recipients are students in the College of Liberal Arts: Brianna Cole and Kellie Shea.
Junior political science/international affairs dual major Brianna Cole is exploring Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she is studying at the University of Belgrano. She can’t believe how affordable the city is; Brianna notes that the official exchange rate is about 5 pesos for $1 USD right now. She is fascinated by Buenos Aires—a “place full of contrasts. There are skyscrapers for miles, then the next block an enormous plaza or botanical garden, extremely modern and chic buildings alongside old and worn out ones.” She has also gotten to experience a South American celebration of Carnaval, the festivities right before Lent, in the small town of Gualehuaychu, where the streets become a parade of revelers selling costumes, headdresses, and glowsticks. Which is not to say that her time in country has always been an easy ride: Brianna got lost trying to navigate the public bus system on the way to the university for the first day of classes. Live and learn!
Honors student Kellie Shea is a junior Russian/international affairs dual major studying in St. Petersburg at the Gertsen Institute this semester. The big news in Russia is, of course, meteors! Kellie writes, “They landed in Siberia, so I was not affected by them, but I am very humbled by the fact that so many people in the U.S. sent me messages asking if I was okay.” Unlike Brianna, Kellie has not had any respite from winter weather; in fact, she has been amazed at how much ice there is everywhere. As she notes, “Saint Petersburg was built on a marsh land and its founder, Peter the Great, wanted this city to be the Venice of the East, with boats on the many rivers to be the primary source of transportation. Now, all the rivers that weave all over the city are frozen. They look like an unpaved multi-lane highway or huge snow covered fields.” Check out the photo of Kellie on the banks of the Neva River, the biggest and widest in Saint Petersburg.
Kellie had her first ‘I’m not in Kansas anymore’ moment when she caught a group of three pickpockets trying to rifle through her backpack. Luckily, nothing was taken! She concludes her report by reflecting on her language progress so far: “I have learned so much colloquial Russian here from talking with native speakers every day. UNH has a great Russian program with amazing professors but you can only learn so much in a classroom. I felt prepared to the best of my ability before coming here, but I have learned so much firsthand by struggling through ordering food, buying tickets and participating in school.”
