2025-04-02
Four months ago, if you told me I'd ever make a statement like this, I probably would've given you a side eye just as severe as my index finger's small -- but mighty -- papercut impeding most things I do. That real life will teach you more than any professor, any discussion post, or any 8 AM ever will has never proven itself more true to me than within this receding semester.
Being abroad has quite literally been the best professional development I never saw coming. Not because of any one course or one lecture, but because of everything else. The real stuff. The everyday stuff. The “figure it out or miss your flight” stuff. The “make friends with strangers who don’t speak your language” stuff. The “you’re the only one who can decide what to do with your time today” stuff.
And the wildest part? It’s working. This semester, I landed a startup internship and brand deals just from showing up as myself and applying the things I’ve learned in life. Not in a lecture. So if you’re trying to upgrade your resume and land the things you want, let me give you the shortcut. You’re not going to learn this in any PDF syllabus. You learn it from doing. From living. From putting yourself in rooms and cities and conversations that stretch you in every possible direction.
So here’s exactly what that’s looked like for me:
1. I’ve gone from being indecisive about everything to making decisions fast.
Like actually fast. Not “I need five days to research every option before booking” fast. I mean now. Studying abroad forces you to make a hundred little decisions every single day. What train to take. What city to visit. Where to stay. How to get there. What to eat when you’re starving and tired but still want something memorable. And through it all, I’ve learned that assertiveness, confidence, and decisiveness aren’t just personality traits. They’re career traits. They show up on your resume. They show up in how you speak. And they show up in how people remember you.
2. I thought I was adaptable… until I really had to adapt.
I used to think being adaptable just meant I could vibe with different friend groups or bounce between extracurriculars, code switching whenever the time called for it. But abroad taught me what adaptability actually looks like. It’s about how you read a room. How you meet people where they are. How you switch up your energy between outgoing Moroccans and quiet, reserved Spaniards. How you order a coffee in a country where you don’t know the language but still manage to make someone smile. THAT is adaptability. It’s about being able to move through the world and meet it with grace. It’s people skills; communication; emotional intelligence. These are things that don’t get taught in lecture slides but matter so much more than half of what is.
3. I’ve simply become a much more interesting person.
Not because I’ve done anything crazy. But because I’m collecting stories. And you better believe that shines through. I’ve met people who tell me my energy is brighter. My stories are better. My resume feels more alive. And I know exactly why. Because when you live with intentionality, that energy is magnetic. Whether it’s adding travel interests to the bottom of your resume or being able to tell a hiring manager about the time you navigated an Italian train strike solo with no WiFi and four percent battery — these moments build your personality. And personality is powerful. People don’t just hire resumes. They hire people.
So yes, I’ve had some of the best academic courses here. But the real learning? That’s happened outside the classroom. The growth you can’t put into a Canvas module. The kind that makes you softer and sharper at the same time.
I’m not saying you have to study abroad to get these experiences. But I am saying you should start putting yourself in spaces that feel just a little uncomfortable. Book the trip. Take the random conversation seriously. Join the side project. Say yes to something even if it scares you a bit. It’s in those things that the stories are born. The resume glows. And the person you’re becoming starts to fully step into the light.
Thank you for being here and following along as I try to live it all out. If you want more tips like these — big sis advice, career reflections, travel rants, tech tangents, and general “figuring-it-out” musings — stick around. There’s so much more where this came from.
You already know what I’m about to say next…
STAY TUNED AND GO TRAVEEEL.