CAPA WORLD

Marianne Zarzar is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance major at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Marianne talks about her favorite My Global City event at the Sydney Observatory and seeing the Australian night sky, planets, and a new way of our place in the universe.

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One of the things I love about CAPA is the number of group activities they plan for us. Not only do these events allow us to experience the city, they also enable us to learn more about the culture of our new home for the summer. Some activities we have done so far include a food crawl in Newtown, a tour of the Blue Mountains and Featherdale Wildlife Park, and a film during the Film Festival. But that’s not all; just last week we had the opportunity of going to the Sydney Observatory by Barangaroo to learn about the Universe and our Solar System.

The night sky from one of the domes.

Going to the Observatory has definitely been one of my favorite activities thus far. I love learning about anything and everything, and so listening to all of the facts our tour guide shared with us during our tour was amazing. Not only did we get to learn from Chris, our tour guide, we also had the opportunity to look through two different telescopes and go inside a room to look at what our night sky would look like without light pollution.

Marianne is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance major at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Marianne introduces us to her lively bunch of friends she shares an apartment with in Sydney.

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After having lived in a single room for the past couple of years, learning that I was going to not only share my room with someone else, but also my apartment with seven other people, was a little scary. Despite my initial reservations, I have come to love and appreciate each and every one of them. I’ll introduce you to a couple of them now.

Meet my roommate Rachel.

My Roommate Rachel

Rachel is my roommate. She is studying Marketing and Human Resources Management at the University of Pittsburgh. She is really sweet and caring, and loves reading. Her favorite things about Sydney are the tacos (she hasn’t been to Mexico yet, but she’ll hopefully come visit me someday to try *real* tacos!), living so close to the beach, and all the coffee shops. Her favorite beach so far has been Manly, since it is just a ferryboat ride away!

Marianne is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance major at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Marianne discusses how she made the decision to study abroad and why Sydney is the right city for her.

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I still cannot believe I made it to Sydney! I wake up every day and feel excited about having been given this amazing opportunity to not only visit Sydney, but also be able to complete an internship and experience the Australian workplace.

This is one of the first pictures I took once I arrived in Sydney. T
his is the view with my back toward the Sydney Opera House.

A lot of people I have talked with have told me that they had planned to study abroad in Sydney for a long time, which wasn’t really the case for me. I knew I wanted to study abroad, but I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go. I went to an international school during my senior year of high school, which gave me the opportunity to interact with people from countries I didn’t even know existed. That experience has made me want to travel more and learn about other cultures. Despite knowing I wanted to study abroad, I waited until the last minute to apply to this program, and it wasn’t until that moment that I decided to specifically apply to come to Sydney. I say this not to encourage people to make last-minute decisions, like I did, but rather to reassure you that if you are still undecided about where to go, or if you should study abroad at all, you can still do it and have time to decide. Use all the resources available to you! I talked with my parents, academic advisor, and friends before deciding, which definitely helped.

Sydney Alderman is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing and Global Management major at the University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Sydney shares what she's learned from her previous study abroad journey and suggests 10 things to prepare for before you leave for your own study abroad experience.

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Hey guys! I thought I’d give a little background on my study abroad experience and also share some important things to do to prepare. A few years ago, I studied abroad in Augsburg, Germany. It was my first time overseas, and it was one of the most exciting and fulfilling experiences I’ve ever had. I’ve been itching to travel again since the day I stepped back in the US. so when the opportunity to go to Sydney came along, I had to take it. Unfortunately, that also meant prepping to go abroad again— which can take a lot of time and be somewhat stressful. To ease some of the pain for other students like me, I’ve come up with 10 things to do before you leave. Read below to learn from my mistakes...because now that I'm on round 2 of this abroad thing, I'm practically a pro right? 😉

I studied abroad in Germany my first time. Sydney will be my second study abroad experience!

1. Get Your Passport (and Visa) Sorted Out

These are important documents and without them, none of these other tips matter! Both can take up to 8 weeks or more to receive so make sure you check this out well in advance.

An Interview with CAPA Sydney Resident Director: Samantha Grant

Meet Samantha Grant, the Resident Director of CAPA Sydney. With experiences and adventures from around the world, including key positions managing student welfare and cultural exchange programs at Victoria University and the University of Sydney, she joined CAPA to oversee student services and internships. Below, she shares how students can prepare for a fulfilling semester abroad, where the hidden gems and good food places are, and what you can look forward to at CAPA Sydney.    

CAPA WORLD: Tell us a bit about your work with CAPA. How long have you lived in Sydney? 
SAMANTHA GRANT: I started with CAPA as Sydney's Resident Director in November 2017, so I have only been with the organization a short while, but already love the people, the culture, and the reasons why the company exists. In my role as Resident Director I oversee internships and student services, as well as having the great pleasure of spending lots of time with the wonderful Sydney staff and our students.

Hanna is an official CAPA blogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing, Finance, and International Business major at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, Carlson School of Management, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In her last post, Hanna reflects on the challenges she's been through and how studying abroad opened doors for her to grow personally and professionally.

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It took me a while to organize my thoughts and come back to the reality of campus life. Studying abroad definitely had a huge impact on me; not only do I notice it, but my friends and family notice it as well. Though, I have been studying abroad in the U.S. for almost 5 years already, participating in the CAPA study and intern abroad program represented a way for me to exit my comfort zone.

Back home in Kyiv, Ukraine, with my dog!

Let me think about where I should begin. Australia has a pretty laid back and relaxed culture, and I think it affected me to the most positive extent. Ever since coming to the States and starting my education career here, I've felt tension and pressure to perform and act in a specific way. I don't know whether it was due to a cultural shock, an attempt to fit in, and/or other reasons. However, going to Australia helped me realize that there is so much more to this world and our lives…the stress and tension should not limit us in our actions and thoughts. Sometimes, we just need to relax, go with the flow, and enjoy good moments without overthinking and emotionally exhausting ourselves.

Katelyn is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance, Marketing, and Supply Chain Management major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In her first post, Katelyn writes out 3 separate packing lists to cover what she needs to bring for her semester abroad in Sydney.

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Hey everyone I’m Katelyn and I’ll be your spring semester Sydney blogger! If you’re anything like me you’ve been stressed about packing since the day the acceptance emails went out and even more now that it's getting closer. Although I have traveled a lot in the past I’m still guilty of overpacking but I find packing lists very useful to try and keep me on track. I hope that my list helps you decide what to bring or reminds you of things you may have forgotten!

Carry On #1

For my first carry on I decided to bring my regular school backpack as it’s the perfect size for going to class and also in case of any small trips.

Nicole is an official CAPA vlogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing & International Business major at Villanova University, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Nicole shares why she traveled to Southeast Asia after her semester in Sydney and what her plans are after returning home.

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Thanks Nicole!

See more of Nicole's journey in Sydney.

Hanna is an official CAPA blogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing, Finance, and International Business major at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Carlson School of Management, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Hanna connects with 5 of her study abroad friends and hear about their experiences and memories abroad.

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I can not stop thinking about Sydney and my study abroad experience! I also often think about people I met during the CAPA program and what they think about the impact studying abroad in Sydney had on them. I decided to check in with some of my friends and see how they are doing and what their study abroad experience was like.

Mitchell Wesoly and Yaz Ketcherside at their "family dinners" formed with their study abroad friends.

Get to know Mitchell Wesoly, Yaz Ketcherside, Kellie Reardon, Ashley Wilson, and fellow Fall 2017 CAPA vlogger Nicole Anderson. They're from all over the U.S. and study in different colleges. See what they had to say below about their time in Sydney!

Nicole is an official CAPA vlogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing & International Business major at Villanova University, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Nicole and her CAPA classmates talk about their internships in Sydney and how their skills and experiences have grown.

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Thanks Nicole!

Nicole's journey continues every Wednesday so stay tuned.