Expectation about Studying Abroad

My personal expectations for my study abroad are to expand my horizons and learn more about Scotland. I believe that travelling and learning about different cultures is extremely important in order to broaden one’s understanding of the world that they live in. All countries and all people are interconnected; thus by experiencing various cultures, ideas, methods, and ways of life, one can more easily relate to others and develop a better sense of the web in which we live. I plan to come back with a new perspective that I may have never, otherwise, received if I had not immersed myself in a new educational system, a new environment, and a new country. Studying abroad will allow me to experience sights, events, and culture first-hand and permit me to fully immerse in a different atmosphere and therefore get a genuine feel and understanding of Scotland as a whole. I have a passion for travelling and experiencing cultures, and I feel that combining doing something I greatly enjoy with the ability to learn from Scottish scholars from one of Edinburgh’s major academic institutions would greatly benefit my university experience.

I chose to apply to study in Scotland at the University of Edinburgh for a number of reasons. Primarily, I would like to travel to a country that I have never been to before. I have visited various countries in Eastern Europe as well as Spain and France, and now I would like to expand my travels to Scotland. In addition, Edinburgh is conveniently located to allow me to travel to various other cities in the United Kingdom, such as Glasgow and Dundee. Furthermore, Edinburgh, as the capital of Scotland, offers a great combination of being a city filled with history while still being modern and cosmopolitan. Edinbur...

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...ilar issue in a different country allows me to learn how immigration is viewed by other nations. Being a Legal Studies major and Sociology minor, I find interest in how authority, in this case the Parliaments of the United Kingdom and Scotland in particular, affects and interacts with society, in this case the discontented citizens. I would be interested in speaking to various individuals that I may encounter during my study abroad in Edinburgh to see how the proposed reforms would affect them and how they feel about the suggested changes, as well as the independence referendum. Even though this issue may be common and affect a large number of countries, the reactions of various individuals often times may vary due to differences in culture, social class, etc., and being able to closely examine how this issue has affected Scotland would be very interesting to me.