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Leavey School of Business Santa Clara University

Stories

ACE Juniors Around the World

15 of our 24 juniors are currently studying abroad, in locations such as Taipei, Seville, London, Milan, Freiburg, and Barcelona. As the ACE students cross the halfway point of their time around the world, we decided to check in with one of our juniors to see hear her experience has been.

 

Throughout the course of this fall quarter, only a handful of the members of the ACE 2019 cohort have shown up to events. The main reason? 15 of our 24 juniors are currently studying abroad, in locations such as Taipei, Seville, London, Milan, Freiburg, and Barcelona. As the ACE students cross the halfway point of their time around the world, we decided to check in with one of our juniors to see hear her experience has been.

Matilde Saucedo, an Accounting major from Chicago, Illinois, is currently studying in Seville, Spain, through the CIEE program. She originally chose her placement because as a fluent Spanish speaker, she knew she wanted to go to a Spanish-speaking country. In addition, Matilde heard positive recommendations from students in the program and, as she was researching the country, was especially enticed by the the city’s rich Muslim influence. During her time in Seville, Matilde has enjoyed immersing herself in the culture and taking courses with locals. As the only American student in two of her classes, she has had the opportunity to take initiative in a setting outside of her comfort zone and embrace being an outsider. Matilde’s advice for students thinking about study abroad is to devote time to creating a four year plan since it is possible to not get into a class. Because of her flexibility and careful planning, Matilde was able to study abroad while also graduating on time with a full course load. In all, Matilde says that her experience is truly an enriching opportunity and she would not hesitate to recommend study abroad to anyone who is considering it.