Santa Barbara City College

I was drawn to the History Department at Santa Barbara City College because of the excellence of its faculty as well as the college more generally. Santa Barbara City College is a unique institution. As such, it is one of the few community colleges to direct study abroad programs for its students. This was a major factor in attracting me to the school.

Ever since I was little, I knew I wanted to travel. Both of my parents traveled as a part of their jobs. I had always heard stories and seen photos of their journeys and immediately knew that’s what I needed to do once I grew older. Once the opportunity arose, I made sure to take it for myself because I believe that the world is our classroom. Exploring and experiencing what is beyond reach is one of the most important things that we can do for ourselves and for each other.

I started as an international community college student at Kirkwood Community College Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and came to the conclusion that I was 100% better prepared to go to a 4-year institution than if I had gone straight to a University. I also traveled a lot while I was growing up in Germany and was fortunate to be exposed to many historical sites, art, and a breadth of cultures, foods, music and more.