Spring 2011 Go Study Abroad Scholarship Winners

GoOverseas.com is proud to announce the winner of our Spring 2011 $1,000 Go Overseas Study Abroad Scholarship: Lauren Martinez! She submitted an outstanding writing sample and a very creative video submission (see right). We're proud to stand behind her and her study abroad dreams!

Lauren is a Journalism student at Ohio University and expects to graduate in 2013. This spring she will be studying abroad in Salamanca, Spain where she hopes to improve her Spanish and hopefully obtain fluency. This opportunity will be a big step toward her professional goals and becoming a bilingual journalist. She also hopes the experience of living abroad will improve her confidence, maturity, and give her a competitive edge when she enters the workforce.

Lauren found her study abroad program through Academic Programs International, who offer many outstanding opportunities to study in Spain.

Go Study Abroad Video Contest:

This year we received almost 800 applications for the Go Study Abroad Scholarship. We want to thank everyone that applied and we're sorry we couldn't award more scholarships to many deserving applicants. We thought, however, that it would be fun to share some of the other great video submissions we received and let our community vote for their favorite. Below is a quote from each of their applications and a link to their video submission. You can then vote for your favorite submission on our Facebook page.

The poll will be open until February 28th and the video with the most votes will receive $100 for their study abroad adventures. Good luck!

Caitlin Bradley (UNC Asheville, '12)

I want to take advantage of this exciting window of opportunity and embrace the challenges and rewards of life in a different country. I want to use the chance of being surrounded by the unfamiliar to help me learn about and make sense both of myself and the world in which I live. I hope that the video submission I have attached will illustrate in a different way my attraction to Korea and my goals for studying abroad and life after college. -

Jacqueline Leah Thomas (University of California, Irvine, '14)

I view Japan as everything that you would want from a country. It has plenty of history and traditional culture, and yet it is a leader in the world's cutting edge technology. The scenery is outstanding and so are the lovely residents. People like to have a good time, but also make education a high priority and are very polite and modest. -

Rebekah Nivala (Wheaton College, '12)

I will have the opportunity to interact with a Finnish family from the Jyvaskyla area, get to know them, and learn about Finnish culture. Also, when I arrive, I will be assigned a student sponsor who will acquaint me with the basics of college life in Finland. Finally, in an attempt to enhance my learning of Finnish culture, I have made plans to board with a Finnish family in Jyvaskyla. This high level of interaction with Finnish people will facilitate conversations in which I can practice my Finnish conversation skills. -

Ariel Bass (Texas A&M, '12)

I am very interested in this unique opportunity because I believe it will give me a chance to get out of a normal classroom environment and encounter issues that pertain to my major. Issues such as sustainability, and natural resource protection can be read in books and listened to during lectures, but in order to get the full and complete realization of it, one must experience these things first hand. -

Kelsey Gaude (Appalachian State University, '13)

I have chosen to study in Ecuador because of the astonishing bio-diversity found in the country. Where I will be traveling to, posses cold mountain regions of the Andes mountains, as well as endless jungle environment located by the Napo river. This will be an environment I am far from familiar with, so it will be an amazing adventure to explore and learn more about. On the trip I will also have the incredible opportunity to work with an indigenous culture and language of Kichwa. - Watch video

Nathalie Carril-King (Widener University, '12)

It has been a dream of mine to learn fluent French because I am half French and I feel as if I have lost my roots due to not keeping touch with the culture. If selected by the scholarship committee this experience will allow me to continue to grow as a scholar while moving forward in life and also reconnect with my roots. This scholarship will not only help me to grow as a person, but it will help me gain new life experience. - Watch video

Claire Geruson (Boston College, '13)

I know I must go back to El Salvador! Once I realized how unified we really were as a people, it gave me so much hope for the future. We will be a successful world ultimately, but to get there we need to work as one common body. I must return to El Salvador, the country that captivated me to again strengthen the bonds that taught me that so much can be given from so little. - Watch video

Jane Monsen (University of Southern Denmark, '12)

There is something about Australia, you feel it and it's just hard to explain, you just have to go there. Oh and another important thing for me. If you really want to do something, you should do it 100 % and when you go across the world (I have to fly for 20 hours - in comparison New York is only 7 hours away) there are no exit strategies. You just have to do it, even though it might be terrifying. And I have never been more terrified in my life - but I have also never been so excited. This really is my dream! - Watch video

Laura Waldron (University of San Francisco, '13)

The country of France, on a larger scale, interests me as both a filmmaker and an individual. Specifically, France's policies on social issues interest me and I would like to observe the country's structure in action. France is much more liberal in its social policies than the United States, specifically relating to tolerance on LGBT issues and universal health care. Both of these elements of French culture could be future topics for a documentary. Exploring France this summer would allow these documentaries to take action and make it more possible to make connections in France. -

Kelli Fyke (Texas A&M University, '12)

I have been reading about Spain and Europe to prepare me to travel there. I have also talked to many people who have traveled to Spain and Europe before. They have told me a lot about the people, food, landscape and lifestyle. I have loved everything I have heard! The food and all of the must-see sites around Spain sound incredible. This really excited me because I would love to be able to travel to other exciting places. After talking and reading, I have realized that Spain was the best fit for me. - Watch video

Krista O'Connell (University of Virginia, '13)

Peru's unique human and geographic landscape inspired Mario Vargas Llosa, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2010, and is the topic of many of his writings. I look forward to being moved by Peru's history, inhabitants, and landscape just like Vargas Llosa once was. I also hope to learn more about myself, Peru, Latin America, and the rest of the world through my own experience. - Watch video

Lauren Fitzgerald (Texas A&M University, '13)

The chance to see a part of the world that much of my family calls home will be the experience of a lifetime. Lastly, since the Marketing Study Abroad trip visits seven European countries, in three of which have French as their official language, I will have a chance to use the three years of French language I took in high school in real-world conversations. Although I am by no means fluent, I believe that being immersed in the language for an extended period of time will really add to my knowledge and understanding of the language and culture. - Watch video

Wendy Taylor Banks (IE Business School, '11)

I believe that other Spanish speaking countries will allow me to learn the language, but they will not offer as many benefits as those offered in Spain. In Spain I will be surrounded by the Spanish culture, people, language as well as a diverse demographic, including Europeans, Asians, Africans, and people from other regions in the world. I know the experience will be advantageous to me academically and professionally for years to come. - Watch video

Jasmin Sun (The University of Texas at Austin, '12)

Why are the divisions between these cities and the country's more rural areas so distinct? Why is it that a country with such a long and storied history would allow itself to be seen as the sole American manufacturer of cheap toys and electronic parts for so many years? Will the country ever return to the cultural prominence it experienced so many thousands of years ago? There are so many questions I'm dying to find answers to! While I probably won't get to all of them, I hope that I will be able to answer at least one during my time there.

Alaina Houser (George Washington University, '12)

I aim to add over 130 million possibilities by mastering Japanese. Also, not only do you learn the language but you will the culture and customs. I have a confession to make: I hate seafood (so shocking). You might be wondering why would a girl who hates fish travel to country whose cuisine typically consists of seafood dishes such as sushi or sashimi. Perhaps Japanese cuisine influence my taste buds. This summer marks the beginning of new explorations and experiences. - Watch video

Monika Eloisa Libson (Texas A&M University, '12)

Dominica is raw, wild, and undisturbed; but in that, possesses beauty and innumerable mysteries to be explored. Going on this adventure is an interesting and daring way to learn about another culture and another way of life; a way to make my own stunning discoveries and admire pure untouched nature. I can hear the call of the wild and I can hardly wait! - Watch video

David Chaar (Texas A&M University, '12)

Although I have traveled to many different places and seen many different cultures, but traveling to Costa Rica, especially for a study abroad, will be an invaluable experience for me. My design and critical thinking skills will be challenged and pushed over their limits, because I will be designing extraordinary processes under Costa Rica's serene environment. -

Diana Nieves Castro (University of Puerto Rico, '12)

I know this will keep happening to me because in Puerto Rico I do not have the need to speak proper spanish since everyone understands the anglicisms. However, in other countries they do not understand, and by merging with the spaniard for six month I will learn proper spanish. I have seen proof of how a couple of months in Spain can change the way a student communicates with others. I am confident I will return from Spain as a different person. - Watch video