Mary Rowe
UMBC Faculty-Led: Dawg Days Abroad in Ireland
Major: Social Work
Pre-Departure Post
Hello reader,
I am Mary, and I am going on a faculty-led abroad trip to Dublin, Ireland, for two weeks! I am currently two years into my journey to becoming a social worker. My passion is to work within the foster care system, which I am going to be able to do while pursuing my master’s in social work at UMBC. The course is surrounded by protest songs. I have already learned so much about songs I hear regularly that have a much deeper and impactful meaning. I was very intrigued when I came across this opportunity. I have wanted to prepare for my first year of dorming after being in community college for two years. I thought to myself how much of a leap this would be to go out of my comfort zone, so dorming would be easier compared to this. I am taking this as a chance to expand my independence and knowledge by immersing myself in a foreign culture to really detach myself so I can focus on me. This is something I would recommend doing for anyone who struggles with anxiety and independence, as it forces you to take a step to better yourself. Choosing you is the only answer, especially when it comes to your education.
So far in my class, I have read a lot about various political movements. At first, the workload was a little overwhelming as it was more than I expected. I feel as though this is not bad, as it will only push me to work harder. The work assigned consists of readings and written responses as well as journals explaining your thoughts and perspectives on a specific topic. Our main project that we are working on is a paper about a protest song or movement and what it means. The written part is broken up into multiple assignments, which I always like, as there is room for feedback and time management. I am also excited to do the daily Dublin Journal assignment, where you write two pages answering some questions about your day abroad. The classes are twice a week in person, three hours long. It is pretty long, but if anything, it prepares me for the early mornings. I am adjusting to sitting down and focusing on school after a long, relaxing summer, where I did not need to use my brain. This course is the perfect diversity credit, and I am grateful I am able to learn such a wide variety of history. It has been interesting learning about the universal music language. Many diverse cultures use music as a form of resistance and expression of emotion. Many commonly played songs are protest songs of sorts, but a lot of historical music speaks loudly of disagreement. I cannot wait to learn about the complexities of protest music, specifically in Ireland. I am lucky enough to be able to learn such things in the place I am studying, while being directed to the exact historical sites. History is vast and I am the utmost excited to be able to explore that in a safe and guided avenue.
I have been preparing for this trip by adjusting myself to constantly looking at my workload, deep cleaning my room, organizing clothes I will need for the weather in Ireland, and talking to my support systems. That last one is the most important to me. There are a lot of people who I am going to miss. For me, it is going to be a long week. To prepare myself for leaving, I am making time to be with friends and family. I have been cleaning and sorting my clothes to better be able to pack. I have also been attentive to the weather in Ireland so I can see how the weather changes there and what to expect. I have been saving money and securing shifts to ensure I have enough money in Ireland, not to worry, and to enjoy myself. I am also happy to hear that we will have 24/7 access to our apartment and campus. I am prepared for multitasking workloads and excursions. It is now less than a week until I will be at the airport getting ready to board for Ireland. In exactly a week, I will be temporarily living in an apartment at Trinity College Dublin. I am so excited and intrigued to be staying and taking classes in those classrooms. Trinity is in the center of Dublin; the location could not be better. There is so much to look forward to, as it outweighs the anxiety of transition. We are told it will be about 4 or so of our gendered peers will be staying in the same apartment with different rooms. I am incredibly happy with this arrangement, considering I was preparing myself to sleep in a bunk bed. We are also incredibly lucky to have access to a traditional Irish breakfast buffet at Trinity for our entire stay. Having a provided meal every day is the perfect way to start a jam-packed day. I will surely be taking this opportunity to try new foods and take advantage of every new experience.
I hope my blog has brought some insight into what an abroad class can bring you. While it has only been three weeks of classes, I have learned a lot. I answered a lot of questions I had myself before beginning this program. Housing and accommodations vary based on each program abroad, but I was most curious about that from other people’s blogs, so I thought it important to include. I would really encourage anyone who is curious about an abroad program to at the very least apply. I thought I missed the application deadline, but I had one more day left! I was a few hours away from not attending, and that would have been a big mistake. Even though I have never taken a jump like this, I am ever the more excited and proud of myself for doing so. I will see you guys next time once I am in Dublin, Ireland!
See you in Ireland!