Summer Abroad at UGA

Posted on: 3 March 2020 by Ruvimbo Rusike in 2019/20

Ruvimbo attended our summer school in UGA

My name is Ruvimbo and I am a final-year History and Business Studies student. Last summer I participated in the UGA summer programme where I spent a week in Georgia, USA with 19 other students. I was so excited when I was offered a place on the programme as I had wanted to do a semester abroad in my second year, but, after looking at the potential costs, it wasn’t something that I could afford to do. As the UGA programme was fully funded, there was nothing holding me back! Although the prospect of spending a week with a group of students I didn’t know was a bit scary, I was really keen to learn more about American history and culture.

It was a great experience staying on the UGA campus, it’s so much bigger than Liverpool! I really enjoyed learning about the education system in the US as it is so different to here in the UK. We specialise our studies much earlier than in the US when we pick our A Levels. American students tend to study a broader range of subjects at university and sometimes they don’t decide their major until their final year. I’m not sure which system I would prefer, I think it would be great to study a wide range of subjects at university but I’m also not very good at maths!

One of the highlights of the trip for me was learning about media in the US and the impact it has on American society. We had a backstage tour of the CNN studios in Atlanta and got to see all of the work that goes in to putting a news story together. It made me realise that there are so many news stories but only a select few actually make the headlines and make it to air. We also had a lecture about reality television at UGA which I found really inspiring as the lecturer was so passionate about her field of study. She talked to us about different industries she has worked in and changing her career path. She really encouraged us to follow our passions and not be afraid of trying something different.

I’m so pleased that I got the chance to go to UGA. The experience has opened my eyes to different career options and also how I should approach things in the future. It has really encouraged me to take the initiative and apply for lots of different opportunities as you never know unless you try. I never thought I would be offered a place on the UGA programme but, I applied and I had the best week making some amazing friends and memories.