The Office of Global Engagement hosted a Coffee Hour for students to enjoy a casual atmosphere to learn about study abroad opportunities on Friday, March 14, under Oakland University’s Elliott Tower.
The event was the perfect pick-me-up to start the classic Michigan spring of cloudy but warm weather.
“So, this is the Global Engagement coffee hour. It’s just for us to get a little more excitement about going and studying abroad,” Rebecca St. Onge, a student who has used the Office of Global Engagement’s program, said. “I’m here as a volunteer to just tell people about my experience studying abroad and to try and get them to join.”
Attending the event — which offered hot coffee, St. Patrick’s Day-themed sweet treats and games to partake in — was a representative of the nonprofit International Oasis organization.
“We only help the international students that only come to Oakland University,” Ira Sema Gonzalez said. “[International Oasis] was founded by two Indian couples, a Chinese couple and an American lady, and they were all international students at some point here or abroad. And they just live here, they’re older and just want to give back to the community,” Gonzalez said.
The Global Engagement office “promotes the global mobility of students and faculty and the worldwide visibility of Oakland University,” and they “believe in the transformative power of global engagement and its positive impact,” according to their website. The office aids international students coming into OU or students who wish to have international semesters of years of education abroad.
Students have the option to pick from different faculty-led programs, exchange programs and partner programs. While faculty-led programs last between 10 days and four weeks over the summer, exchange programs enroll students at a foreign university for a full academic year. The Search Programs page is the perfect place to start browsing opportunities based on major, time of year and location.
“So, we spent, I’d like to say, just under three weeks [in England], and it was so cool. The infrastructure and the architecture there is just so different, it’s so beautiful. We studied a lot of performances, we went to see Shakespeare performances in all different settings, and we went to the globe, to a park and a castle in Oxford,” St. Onge said about her experience. “The biggest takeaway I got was just to be adventurous with your life and with your studies. I never would have thought to do this, and I came across it one day and it was awesome, it was amazing. I learned so much while I was there.”
Students can use the aid of the numerous resources the Global Engagement Office provides for scholarships, studying abroad programs, or welcoming in new international scholars. Just this summer of 2025, study abroad programs will be occurring in Italy, France, Germany, the UK, Slovakia, Morocco and Taiwan.
The Office of Global Engagement, room 328 at O’Dowd Hall, has walk-in advising hours in the afternoon, Monday through Thursday, when students can talk to advisers about coordinating the credit validation, financing and next steps. Every Wednesday from noon until 2 p.m. the office tables at the Oakland Center host students who have studied abroad who can answer questions and share insight into the experience.
To sign up for any of these programs and to find more information, the International Education page holds numerous resources to plan, finance and enjoy learning around the world.
