Just recently I returned home from Italy after studying for four weeks in Rome as well as spending another week travelling around the country with my mom.

I signed up to go and live for four weeks in Rome, in the summer between my junior and senior year. I took two classes and lived in an apartment in the Prati section of Rome.

Studying abroad was truly a trip of a lifetime. I got to live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and got to travel around one of the most beautiful countries in the world. I learned from a whole different type of culture and values, one that I never experienced before. I also got to live, travel, study, party etc. with some of the most amazing people I had ever met in my life. I also had some pretty decent food.

There are endless reasons why I could tell you to study abroad, but the one that I will 100 percent guarantee is that it will change your life forever.

During the program I took an Italian language as well as an Italian culture class, and I learned an enormous amount from the two about the incredible country I was living. But it wasn't in the classroom that had the biggest impact on me, it was outside the classroom.

It was figuring out how to use the transportation system in the city, how to order something at a local cafe and even learning how to dry my clothes without a dryer. I myself had to figure out how to live in this environment I was not at all familiar with. To give you an example, on the first day of classes my roommate and I got lost getting to the school, and ended up having to take a taxi, arriving 30 minutes late.

Now to say the least I also had a lot of fun on this trip. Being legal in a different country with a bunch of college students, makes for a wild time. But I had to keep reminding myself that although this was a vacation, I was there to take classes and get an education; goofing off the entire time was not an option. This is where finding a balance, like how you normally would at school comes into great use.

Studying abroad was one of the best experience of my life, and is one I know I will never forget. I encourage you so much to take on this opportunity and when you do, go into it with an open mind and take it all in. Studying abroad changed the way I viewed the world, and changed who I am as an individual.