{"id":77876,"date":"2024-11-27T13:14:11","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T20:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/?p=77876"},"modified":"2024-11-27T13:14:11","modified_gmt":"2024-11-27T20:14:11","slug":"sait-offers-opportunities-to-travel-for-free-with-study-abroad-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/2024\/11\/27\/sait-offers-opportunities-to-travel-for-free-with-study-abroad-program\/","title":{"rendered":"SAIT offers opportunities to travel for free with Study Abroad program"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Leading from afar:<\/strong> Laurel Sherriff shows Study Abroad posters in the student engagement office on SAIT campus. Sheriff leads Study Abroad trips from SAIT. (Photo by Devon Custus\/SAIT)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

T<\/span>hrough the Study Abroad program, SAIT provides opportunities for students to travel all over the world \u2014 and some are free for eligible students.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe federal government came up with this funding initiative to basically promote international education for those who it’s not always accessible for,\u201d says Laurel Sherriff, a student engagement coordinator at SAIT.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the trips that we run, we can afford with this funding to fund students who fall into one of a few categories \u2014 which include students with disabilities, students who are low income, and Indigenous students. We can offer them these experiences without the big price tag, making sure that they are also reaping the many benefits of international education.\u201d<\/p>\n

Currently, SAIT is offering a fully-funded trip to Costa Rica over the February reading break, during which students have the opportunity to learn about Costa Rica\u2019s indigenous peoples by taking part in an immersive experience. Over the last four years, SAIT has also received government funding for trips to Portugal, Peru, Switzerland, and Denmark.<\/p>\n

\u201cA few of the things that we hope that students learn have to do with appreciating and looking to incorporate diverse perspectives into their work, understanding the value of intercultural education and basically being very open minded to new experiences and new people,\u201d Sherriff says.<\/p>\n

\u201cSAIT students have some really great practical and applied skills that they come out of their programs with, and we hope study abroad can add some intercultural components to that education, making them really well-rounded individuals.\u201d<\/p>\n

James Plunkett, a third-year financial services student, found a lot of value in last year\u2019s Costa Rica trip, despite it not directly relating to his program.<\/p>\n

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Back home:<\/strong> James Plunkett enjoys a break between classes on the SAIT campus. Plunkett went to Costa Rica with SAIT’s Study Abroad program in February of 2024. (Photo by Devon Custus\/SAIT)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIt gives me a little bit more of the life experience that I want,\u201d Plunkett says.<\/p>\n

His biggest learning?<\/p>\n

\u201cHow to interact with different cultures and not necessarily go in assuming certain things of different cultures,” he says. “Especially when they’re so different than the one that I grew up in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Students on the Costa Rica trip experienced aspects of Indigenous cultures by staying in traditionally built huts in the rainforest. Activities like traditional crafts, harvesting cocoa, and hiking tours gave students opportunities to learn about the local Bribri and Maleku peoples.<\/p>\n

One of the highlights of the trip for Plunkett was seeing how Costa Rica\u2019s Indigenous people make their huts.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m a very hands-on learner, so the way they make their huts, and how expensive it is now versus when they used to use their own materials \u2026 was probably the most interesting thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

SAIT offers a wide variety of Study Abroad experiences, some directly relating to specific areas of study, and some with a broader scope.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey always have something really good to offer, whether it’s an academic focus or more of a cultural study,\u201d Sherriff says.<\/p>\n

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Artifacts from abroad:<\/strong> Laurel Sherriff displays a carved canoe in the student engagement office, which was brought back from Costa Rica. (Photo by Devon Custus\/The Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Through the Study Abroad program, SAIT provides opportunities for students to travel all over the world \u2014 and some of them are free for eligible students. [ READ MORE ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":926,"featured_media":77877,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_ef_editorial_meta_text_assignment-slug":"Study Abroad DC","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,1587],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-77876","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-campus-2","8":"category-sait-learning"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/926"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77876"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77876\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78488,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77876\/revisions\/78488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitjournalism.ca\/thepress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}