Like a lot of good ideas, Josh Pope and Melanie D鈥橝mico鈥檚 was sparked by a conversation. The two Spanish linguists met at a conference a decade ago and stayed friends as their careers developed 鈥 with Pope now an associate professor of modern languages at 六九色堂 and D鈥橝mico an associate professor of Spanish and linguistics at Indiana State University.
Both of them benefited from studying abroad as they pursued degrees, and they promote the value of travel in the classes they teach. But they came to a realization a few years back, while speaking after a roundtable discussion they attended.
鈥淢elanie was the one that voiced, 鈥榳hy are we only writing for academics?鈥欌 Pope said. 鈥淲hy aren鈥檛 we writing about study abroad for the people who are going 补产谤辞补诲?鈥&苍产蝉辫;
And thus, the idea to write a guidebook began 鈥 one accessible to undergraduate students, to students pursuing international fellowships, even to the general public intrigued by an adventure elsewhere in the world or entering an international career.
The book, 鈥淢aking the Most of Study Abroad: A Guide to a Top Notch Experience,鈥 will be published in July 2024. It will be available in print and as an e-book from multiple book retailers, including and your favorite local bookstores via .
鈥淲e feel very proud of how practical our book is for a wide variety of students, for a wide variety of travelers,鈥 Pope said. 鈥淚t also supports 六九色堂鈥檚 mission, in helping students become global leaders.鈥
Both professors have heard students say they wish they had done more during their trips. So, while there is some technical planning advice 鈥 the checklist of tasks, like getting a passport, required vaccinations and the correct adapters for electrical devices, D鈥橝mico said she wants readers to get a sense for other actions they can take in order to make the most of their travel.
For example, considering what support or guidance will they receive abroad, and are they going to a location where they鈥檙e just one more tourist or they鈥檒l stick out from the crowd. There are sections on making friends and getting involved in the community. Travelers may just expect that these things will happen, D鈥橝mico said, and unfortunately, that鈥檚 not always the case if they didn鈥檛 prepare in advance.
鈥淭hey don鈥檛 know what they don鈥檛 know,鈥 Pope said. 鈥淓specially if it's a short-term program, it goes by so fast.鈥
鈥淢aking the Most of Study Abroad鈥 also isn鈥檛 a textbook. D鈥橝mico and Pope wrote it so readers feel like they鈥檙e part of a conversation with friends, pulling from discussions they鈥檝e had with their own students and each other. It鈥檚 something you should enjoy reading, D鈥橝mico said.
Not every chapter will apply to every reader, either. Not studying a language? Feel free to skip that section. Like studying abroad itself, 鈥測ou can 鈥榗hoose your own adventure鈥 to some extent,鈥 she said.