The Mike Snyder Blog

Experiential – The Experiential student wants to do everything there is to do, and see everything there is to see. They do not usually have specific agendas for the places they visit: what’s important is that they were there, have a story to tell, and took some memorable photos to prove it. Experiential students are go-getters (sometimes on a competitive level), never letting a weekend go un-traveled nor passing up an opportunity to try out a local custom or learn a new craft.

Knowledge – Knowledge students are always on the look out, their brains constantly churning and retaining huge amounts of information about their host country (which they treat as a kind of lab rat). Quite often they’ll make connections with their life in America, or they’ll be interested in an esoteric topic of their choosing. Knowledge students prefer to stay in the back and observe, rather than participate, but they end up churning out some really good research papers.

Cultural – This student’s prerogative is to blend in with the host culture however possible. A Cultural student is extremely proactive about learning the language, making friends with kids in the street and approaching locals frequently. Eventually they adopt the local habits and even some local customs (Islam, anyone?). I find that these students are the most spontaneous and sometimes aloof, not as interested in attending class or traveling as that takes away from their time immersed in the culture and with the people.

Reflective – Reflective students are inwardly curious, paying more attention to their own emotional ups-and-downs than observing the host country. Study abroad is for them a personal journey, with a storyline plot and a happy ending. Journals or blogs are utilized daily. By the semester’s conclusion, these students want to know if and how they’ve changed; dying one’s hair or coming back with a new wardrobe is probable—an outward metaphor for an inner transformation.

Pleasure – Even in Morocco—or perhaps, especially in Morocco—there are those students who seem guided primarily by their senses. Keep in mind this isn’t Europe: bars, clubs, discothèques, and contact with the opposite sex in Morocco are hard to come by. Thus, pleasure-seekers may search for exotic foods, breathtaking scenery, and other sensual delights. There’s plenty to go around.

Transfer – The Transfer student is one for whom their semester abroad is no different than a semester at their university, either because they desire the equanimity or because they simply aren’t motivated by any of the above categories. These students often attempt to minimize the differences they experience abroad by doing familiar activities, like enrolling at a gym, reading books during their free time, frequently using Facebook or Skype, and studying like they would at home.

There’s plenty of overlap, of course. If I had to rate myself right now, I would be something like 40% Culture, 40% Knowledge, and 20% Reflective. My blog is definitely Knowledge-based, and reading other people’s blogs gives an idea as to what categories they belong.

What’s so interesting about these categories is how some complement each other while others tend to repel. Experiential/Reflective is a powerful combination—easily the most popular choice in my program—and makes for students who write in their journals while on a bus to who-knows-where. Knowledge/Transfer makes for intellectually curious students who spend lots of time in the house asking questions of their home stay families.

On the other hand, Experiential and Cultural can be tricky to balance. While both highly independent, experiential students, from my observations, are more likely to exoticize the host culture, for example, by taking photos that highlight differences as well as buying touristy souvenirs. Indeed, the very nature of “new experiences” implies differences and the unknown. A Cultural student on the other hand does not want to see himself or herself as an outsider, even though others inevitably will. Thus, an Experiential student buys the clothes people in America think Moroccans wear, while a Culture student buys the clothes Moroccans actually wear. Get it?

If you’re planning on going abroad, I challenge you to place yourself into one of these categories, or create your own rubric. It’s harder than you think, and you may even realize that the study abroad student you hope to be in the future is in fact quite different from who you are right now. But who knows. Maybe you’ll come back to the States transformed—with a fresh take on life and a new birth of confidence. Just don’t forget to dye your hair.