Rome, Here I Come!

Hello! My name is Hui. I’m a Classics and Psychology double major from Boston, MA. When I’m not in class, I take pictures of events and scenic views on campus. I will be studying in Rome this fall as part of Temple University’s Education Abroad program, which is one of the many study abroad opportunities offered at Holy Cross.

I can’t believe that I’ll be going on my adventure overseas already! It feels like I learned about the study abroad experience from returning students at the Study Abroad Fair, during program-specific information sessions, and through one-on-one appointments with the Office of Study Abroad just yesterday!

I am grateful for the guidance I received at Holy Cross throughout the study abroad process. I’m thankful to my professors and advisors for helping me with my application last year and with my class planning for my semester abroad. Over the summer, the Office of Study Abroad made sure that all my travel documents were ready before I leave the States while the staff at Temple Rome helped me enroll in my courses for the fall and gave me a pre-departure checklist to prepare for my time in Rome.

I’ve put the finishing touches on my preparations this weekend: exchanged some dollars for euros, bought some EU-to-US outlet adapters, sorted all my travel documents, and unlocked my phone so I can use a local SIM card in Italy. All ready to go!

I’ve learned some useful tips in preparing for my time abroad. I had a lot of questions about getting ready for my semester in Rome, and I’m glad I had access to a lot of helpful resources. I met other students studying at Temple Rome this fall on social media and have been in touch with Temple Rome staff to take care of miscellaneous questions and forms. Here’s what I picked up from my experience:

1.) Reach out – don’t be afraid to ask your study abroad advisors and/or reach out to your host institution if you have any questions or concerns about preparing for your study abroad experience. The sooner you reach out, the sooner you’ll get answers!

2.) Plan ahead –  you’ll be notified of anything you’ll need to do for your applications or preparations far in advance. This applies for both the study abroad application during the year and for forms in the summer.  Make sure to do things that might take longer to complete first.

3.) Stay up to date – check your email to make sure you haven’t missed anything from the Office of Study Abroad or from your host institution. Any issues that might come up in your progress can be resolved easily if you’re aware of them! People are here to help.

4.) Get to know other students and administrators online – there might be social media groups where you can meet others in the program. You never know when someone else may have already asked or answered a question you have. You may even get learn new things from what other people have already discussed. I had a lot of “Wow, I haven’t even thought of that!” moments after seeing what other Temple Rome students mentioned online.

I’m looking forward to meeting everyone at Temple Rome and to exploring the campus and city at orientation! I’m ready to embark on this adventure: this road leads to Rome! Here I come!