We hear a lot about a midlife crisis, but I would like to propose a new phenomenon: the Mid-College Crisis™: that moment in your junior year when you realize you are about to dedicate your life to something you chose at 18.
Does the mere thought send you into a cold sweat? Was your 18-year-old self not exactly a beacon of good decisions? Have you considered living off the land rather than responding to another discussion post? Then you, too, may be in a Mid-College Crisis.
Thankfully, it's not terminal. I have found the cure so you don't have to, and you'll never guess what it is… studying abroad!
Pre-med or pre-nervous break? An autobiography
As a pre-med student, I am currently staring down the beast that is the MCAT and med school applications. My plan going into junior year was to become a family medicine doctor and settle down in my hometown. Between 10 more years of school and retiring 20 minutes away from my childhood home… there was a lot of room for regret in my plan. I was constantly second-guessing myself.
My backup plan was to switch to an English degree and work to become a professor and author. I love literature, and the classes sounded much nicer than accelerated physics over the summer. Still, I didn't want to look back and took the easy way out. I was afraid that whatever I chose, the grass would always look greener on the other side.
So, I decided to hop the fence and take a wander around the other pasture!
These are the public water fountains here in Spain. You drink right out of the faucet—just be careful not to fall in! Behind it is an orange tree and a hostel covered in hand-painted ceramics. Three things I had never seen before, all in one frame.
Exploring the road not taken: Scenic route vs science route
Instead of studying science this semester, I decided to put all my credits towards my second major, Spanish. I was able to take classes like Spanish literature, art, and culture. I wanted to explore more creative subjects since I was already well aware what a gen chem class consisted of (despair). I also spend my free time here writing and experimenting with new forms. In addition to my usual poems or short stories, I’ve also been trying my hand at writing a novel (40,000 words and counting!).
Studying abroad is the perfect time to find some new hobbies—or dust the old ones off the shelf.
Here's a beautiful view from the Alhambra. I later learned about this exact part of the monument in my Spanish Art History class. Where better to learn about culture than in the stunning Andalusian region of Spain?!
Absence makes the heart grow fonder (and nerdier)
Whoever said that absence makes the heart grow fonder was really onto something. I love my classes here in Spain, and I think the break from science was needed to prevent burning out. However, I was shocked by how much I missed STEM. If I was bored in class, I would see how much of the glycolysis process I remembered or draw out old organic chemistry mechanisms.
I found myself missing biology like a sailor's wife staring longingly at the sea. I was seriously ready to put a picture of mitochondria in a locket around my neck. It was a whole other level of nerd, you guys.
This break from my major made me realize that, as much as I enjoy the humanities, nothing makes me downright giddy like science does. It re-lit my spark and reminded me why I chose pre-med in the first place. I can continue to enjoy the relaxation and creativity here for the next few months, before returning home re-inspired.
The semester abroad also made me see that, though I want to continue my major, I definitely want to keep writing too. The low-stress environment of a semester abroad has let me commit myself fully to my passion projects and explore interests outside of medicine. It has shown me that I need both of these things in my life to be happy, which can only mean staying on my current path.
I realized I can be a doctor who writes in their free time, but I can’t be a writer who delivers babies on an open Saturday. Even if I won the Pulitzer Prize, I still wouldn't be happy without medicine.
If you are uncertain about your future career, use a semester abroad to try on a new one and see how it fits!
Three clicks and I'm… somewhere
I hadn't traveled much outside of my state and wasn't sure if there was somewhere I would rather settle down. During this semester, though, I was able to see cultural norms among not just the Spanish, but also the many other Americans in my classes. The people here in Andalusia are known for their friendliness and warmth, which I can definitely attest to (and being from Minnesota, I know a thing or two about friendliness). I have met great people from the U.S. here, but I didn't realize how much cultural norms varied between states.
If you were wondering if Minnesota nice is a real thing, then let me enlighten you. Behavior that is totally normal in the rest of America would leave me wondering if someone hated me. In Minnesota, there isn't really such a thing as strangers. You talk to people you've just met as if they were an old friend, and if you need help, someone will just walk up and offer a hand. I think the other Americans I’ve met were probably confused why I was acting like we were besties before I even knew their name, but that's Minnesota nice for you, I guess.
There are good people everywhere, but I realized that the sense of community back home is something rare. I am confident that, at least for me, there truly is no place like home. (I mean, where else is getting two feet of snow in mid-March?)
Here I am cooling down on a warm Spanish day while my dad is back home shoveling the driveway.
Studying abroad: The tapas of life
Well, that has been my journey... and to think I’m only halfway done. If you could relate to my story or are having a Mid-College Crisis of your own, then study abroad! I promise that nothing gives you perspective like 4,000 miles of distance. You will find yourself most in those mistakes you don't regret making, the untread paths you take a hedge cutter to, the things crossed off your bucket list that you never thought to add.
Studying abroad is your chance to try a little bit of everything and see what tastes the best—the tapas of life!