IFSA University College Dublin Partnership

What I appreciate most about IFSA is their dedication. I had a wonderful experience abroad in Dublin, Ireland and IFSA served as the platform which enabled me to have everlasting friendships and memories. From my first experiences like choosing my classes and other introductory conversations, it was evident that if I ever had a question or worry someone at IFSA would be there to help. Not only was this the case before arriving in Ireland, but also throughout the time I was there. Our program leader was amazing and truly made the experience for a lot of my friends and I. She was extremely hard working and was dedicated to her job, which was to ensure we were safe, well off, and enjoying our stay. She created an environment where we all felt safe to be ourselves and absorb in the new culture and fun things the city had to offer. I was introduced to brand new people and a brand new city, and while it was a little intimidating at first, I am grateful for every minute of it. I was able to experience what a big university in an urban setting felt like. The complete opposite of what my home school is. This is just one of the many cases where I was exposed to the other side of the spectrum. For three months I was able to live a different life and with that I learned so much about myself. It was a time for me to reflect and realize who I truly was in this new environment. I learned that I am stronger than I know, and capable of amazing things. In addition to this independence, I learned little things like how keep a schedule and stay organized, especially if you are in three different countries in a course of a week. This new environment created so many memories and friendships that I will cherish forever.

I truly could not put into words how much I enjoyed my experience. My experience exceeded every single one of my expectations. IFSA was the perfect bridge for me between me and University College Dublin along with a connection in Ireland. As someone who was a little nervous to be in a foreign country for a whole semester without anyone I knew, the IFSA events, orientation, and staff on site always made me feel comfortable, and it helped me so much to know there were people there for me at all times. It was extremely nice to have someone explain how the education system differs in Ireland from what I was used to and also someone to guide me through each part of my experience in order to have the best experience possible. The IFSA staff were also incredibly helpful both before and after my time abroad. When preparing, all of my emails were answered within hours I sent them, and the advisors even got syllabi from UCD that I asked for. When returning, IFSA gave a lot of materials to cope with reverse culture shock and kept up with me as an outlet to share about my experience. All in all, I would recommend IFSA to anyone looking to study abroad and am forever grateful to them for contributing to an experience that I will treasure my whole life.

IFSA provided me a study abroad experience that I will never forget. Going abroad is a humongous decision and commitment. Many people could feel anxious, excited, nervous, and even a little scared. I certainly felt all of these before my trip. However, from the first day that I landed in Dublin, I knew that I had an amazing support system with IFSA. They had their own orientation with the purpose of getting us acclimated and ready to call Ireland home for the next few months. Many of my friends who studied in different places did not have this and found the transition quite hard in the first couple of weeks. Also, they sponsored two trips to surrounding areas of Ireland where we were able to experience and immerse ourselves in the distinct Irish culture. Studying abroad is an amazing, and I am super grateful for IFSA as they provided me the platform to meet new friends and get to know Ireland.