Thailand: Speech, Occupational & AAC Adventure

I have nothing but great things to say about my time in Chiang Mai! This opportunity was a nice mixture of clinical observation, hands-on learning, and cultural immersion. I will never forget the partnering foundations and families we had the privilege of working with, and I am deeply grateful for the trust and openness they shared with us. This program pushed me outside of my comfort zone and allowed me to grow not only as a future clinician but also as a person. Every day was intentionally designed and filled with meaningful experiences. While the schedule was often physically and mentally demanding, I truly believe this intensity allowed us to make the most of every opportunity and fully engage in all that the program had to offer. I am also extremely thankful for our local facilitator P Pann, whose organization, knowledge, and passion made this trip run so smoothly! Overall, this trip was unforgettable and something I will keep with me throughout my future career.

This Therapy Abroad Trip brought so many positive things to my life. I got the chance to practice my clinical and interdisciplinary collaboration skills, got to immerse myself in a completely different culture than my own, and I made some amazing friendships that I will cherish long after my time abroad. Everything down to the food and transportation was arranged and thoroughly organized (thanks to our local program facilitator P Pann!), which made it easier for us students to enjoy every aspect of the cultural and clinical experiences.

My time studying abroad in Thailand was truly unforgettable and deeply meaningful. From the moment I arrived, I was welcomed into a culture filled with warmth, compassion, and connection. Through this experience, I was able to observe Occupational Therapy in real-life settings, work with children, and witness the impact of care across different cultural perspectives. Every day challenged me to grow, not only as a student, but as a person. Living abroad pushed me outside my comfort zone, helped me gain confidence and independence, and reminded me why I chose this path in the first place. The friendships I formed, the lessons I learned, and the moments I shared will stay with me forever. Thailand didn’t just teach me about OT, it helped shape who I am becoming.

This was such a fun and educational experience! I grew so much personally and professionally over these past two weeks! Everything I saw was eye-opening and I look forward to taking what I have learned with me about the culture and clinical practices in Thailand to the U.S.! Thank you for this once in a lifetime opportunity!!

I really enjoyed my study abroad experience in Thailand as I was immersed in so many different cultures within the span of 12 days. These cultures vary from traditional Thai, special needs, Deafness and tribal traditions. I had an amazing time interacting with the people of this country and had nothing but friendly & positive encounters! Interacting with the children at each school and foundation was amazing! Although the different languages spoken was a contributing factor to my interactions. It was not a barrier. The beautiful thing about this experience was finding different ways to connect with people from a different culture! As a future American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter, I was ecstatic to visit the Anusarnsuntorn School of the Deaf & Autism School. Seeing a different dialect of signed language was eye opening and heart warming. The signs for “my name is” is the same in ASL and Thai Sign Language (TSL). It was amazing to see the children were so excited to communicate with me in their language. We were even able to introduce ourselves to each other and it was so fulfilling. I left feeling inspired and wanting to learn TSL being able to communicate with the deaf population of Thai people. But, none of this could have been possible without our AMAZING tour guide Amara. Amara was eager and enthusiastic from the moment we met her to the moment we left. She is very knowledgeable about her country and was able to answer our questions and tailor our trip in order to make this an experience of a life time for all Therapy Abroad students. She did great translating for us everytime we needed to. Overall, I had an amazing experience and my perspective, heart, and mind had been broadened through a cultural lens!

I had a truly unforgettable experience. There were certain times where we felt lost or confused and could have had better instruction. Additionally, I could have used some more time in the tykes camp itself. I loved working with the kiddos, and I would’ve LOVED to get to know them better! However, the cultural experience, professional experience, and connections I made with others were unmatched (whether it was with locals, our group, other travelers, or CMU students). We jam PACKED as much as we possibly could into a two week trip to Thailand, and I wouldn’t have it any other way! This was in (HUGE) part to our guide and mentor Amara. She was the glue that held all of us together and would drop everything in an instant for any of us. You could instantly feel the love she gave to all of us, and I am going to miss her dearly. Additionally, there was much much MUCH to learn from our supervisor Cheri, and I am very appreciative to learn more about AAC from her and about her experience. I look forward to learning more about the world of speech and furthering my career!

It’s not often that you get to travel abroad, and it’s a very rare case that you get to travel abroad for an experience in your field. Not only was it amazing to experience another culture and country, but to teach using AAC to underrepresented populations and provide communication for those who are unable to use verbal cues. The people I’ve met were amazing and this is an experience I’ll never forget. I do think that the curriculum could’ve been more specific and provided us with more detail ahead of time. I felt uncertain at times what the intent/purpose of the program was. However, our Thai guide (Amara) was amazing and did whatever she could to make our stay comfortable and make this experience memorable. Even when our supervisor wasn’t as helpful.

I had fun while learning about my profession in a different country. It was a unique experience that allowed me to immerse myself in Thai culture, observe diverse clinical practices, and gain a deeper appreciation for the global impact of my field during my two-week study abroad in Thailand.

I had a good time, I think it’s very packed schedule, I wish we had chosen of we wanted to go to dinner when we were doing other activities so we didn’t have to leave the activity we were doing but over all am and beer were amazing. And we did lots of family meals which was fun but I wasn’t prepared for it and I’m a bit picky. Overall would do again.

My experience with therapy abroad was relatively good. I loved Amara and Beer who were our Thai coordinators! I wish we had more time hands on with the kids instead of tours of facilities. I also wish we had more guidance or structure to what we had to do for camp. I also think that a lot of your program depends on your supervisor and the group of people you are with!

I have a lot of problems with dirt, mud, the ground, grass, heat, mosquitoes, and just nature in general. It’s an absolute nightmare, but overall, I had fun, and I would do it again. The food was good, and I liked most of the activities. I’m going to miss lychee juice.

I thoroughly enjoyed my Thailand experience! The food, people, culture, schools, learning experience, and teachers all exceeded my expectations. I would recommend therapy abroad to anyone looking to study abroad! I was a little hesitant coming as an older student but am very fulfilled and glad I came.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Thailand! The people, culture, food, experiences all exceeded my expectations. I feel grateful for this opportunity and would recommend to anyone looking to study therapy abroad. I was nervous to come, as I am a lot older than the other students, but feel like the impact it made in my life, was worth coming as an older student.

I have never been to Asia before going to Thailand. The culture and country are like nothing I have experienced before. Learning about Buddhism, eating traditional Thai food, and seeing school children made the experience amazing. Even more, the local Thai guides and students who came on the trip — with the same passions as me — was really a once in a lifetime experience for a young adult. As I prepare to go to OT school, I have met lifelong friends and peers to call on for advice. I am so grateful for the opportunity to travel to Thailand and would recommend the program (I already have!)

This experience is truly one of a kind. Not only was this trip my first time out of America, but it was also a huge leap of faith as a naturally introverted person. The minute we all met up for the group flight, I felt at ease. I quickly realized this group all shared my same love and care of people. What a truly unique experience to get to meet with 11 or so other students your age who also share your passion, and travel across the world together. Throughout the whole trip, we were supported by 2 of the best local guides and 2 of the greatest supervisors anyone could ever have. I have not only learned so much about the field of Speech Therapy but about myself. Where else are you, as an undergraduate student, going to have the opportunity to design and implement a therapy activity for real life students in need? Most importantly though, I genuinely am leaving this experience with a whole group of new lifelong friends. I’ve already made plans to go to the different states of the people I’ve met on this trip to visit after we leave. Taking this trip with Therapy Abroad has changed my life. Thank you!

I loved my experience with Therapy Abroad. I feel like I learned so much about both OT and Thai culture, and am walking away from this trip feeling more confident and prepared to enter the OT field. I also hugely appreciated both our clinical supervisors and program supervisors. They made the program feel so organized and educational, and provided so much support to the students.

I really enjoyed my time in Thailand with TherapyAbroad. We had so many opportunities to see, learn, and immerse in all of Thai culture. Everyone was so welcoming and helpful. This experience is truly once in a lifetime to be surrounded by alike people while gaining experience towards a future career goal.

This experience helped me first hand experience the OT field and gave me knowledge and skills in many ways. This was an experience that grew me as a person, not only did I learn skills for teamwork and accountability, but it also grew my confidence.

This program was such a great balance between career development and cultural immersion. I love that there was plenty of time dedicated to both career-related experiences and exploring Thailand, and on top of that, time to ourselves to use how we saw fit. I appreciate the reflections we did and I enjoyed getting to know everyone, in both professional and personal ways. Very grateful for all the hard work going on behind the scenes, the people coordinating everything are genuinely super caring and supportive. This was an incredibly valuable experience with so many memories to last a lifetime.

I can’t put into words how wonderful this experience was. I was extremely nervous immersing myself into a culture in which I was unfamilar with people who I didn’t know. Kit and K could’nt have been more helpful. They are two of the most genuine, kind people I’ve ever met and you should do whatever it takes to keep them around for as long as possible. I learned so much about the field im interested in, the Thailand culture, and myself. We were very lucky to have Lauren and Paula to learn from in our short time here . I appreciated how nice and knowledgable they were throughout my entire experience. They made no question feel like a dumb one and made everyone feel involved and heard. This was a once in a lifetime trip, I highly reccomend to anyone interested in learning about the field or the Thailand culture