For decades, the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa has helped make Iowa City a nexus for writers of all ages, walks of life, levels of success—and countries of origin. This environment has enhanced the lives of UI students and Iowa City residents, and for the last several years the IWP has taken the richness of Iowa City’s writing culture to other countries. 

Undergraduate management student Anna Kroeger recently studied abroad at the University of Cape Town in Cape Town, South Africa. To help fund her study abroad experience, Kroeger applied for and received an IES Abroad Scholarship as well as a scholarship from the Nicole M. Johnston International Fund through the Tippie College of Business. Learn more about Kroeger’s study abroad experience below.

At home in Des Moines, I drive almost everywhere I go. In Iowa City, I walk more, but maybe only a few miles each day. While living in Prague, I walk around 7 miles every day, and always more when I travel on the weekends. My record in one day is sixteen miles in Paris! My feet do feel pretty destroyed after four months of this lifestyle, but the constant movement and exercise is so refreshing (and helps shed off some of that weekly gelato).

Environmental challenges come in all shapes and sizes. Some seem far away and intangible while others touch us in our homes, on our farmland, in the air we breathe, and in the water we drink. Leading experts in climate science and environmental research joined WorldCanvass host Joan Kjaer on April 25 to discuss the most pressing concerns facing Iowans and international efforts to mitigate potentially disastrous effects of climate change and the resulting disruption to populations worldwide.

Senior Akash Bhalerao will graduate from the University of Iowa this weekend. Bhalerao has been involved with numerous UI organizations and departments and has become a familiar face on the campus.

This year the College of Education Center for Evaluation and Assessment conducted an evaluation of the faculty-led study abroad program offered through UI International Programs in the 2017-18 Winterim Session. Students who participated were asked to complete a pre-trip survey in December and a post-trip survey when they returned in January.

UI student receives a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award for research to the Netherlands

Travel can be stressful. Foreign languages can be stressful. Bus schedules can be stressful. New places can be stressful. This semester I’ve realized that traveling isn’t always the sunshine and rainbows that we see on social media or that people like to highlight. Sometimes it takes a couple mental breakdowns in a bathroom stall in an airport to get to that point. If you can’t tell, I speak from experience.

FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is a middle and high school based program in which teams of students design, build, and program robots. Under the direction of Rebecca Whitaker, the University of Iowa College of Engineering has been the Affiliate Partner organization for FIRST Tech Challenge since 2009. Through this partnership, the Iowa program has become known across the world as a leader with FIRST Tech Challenge. Due to the successes of FIRST Tech Challenge in Iowa through hosting large tournaments, Whitaker was invited to attend the FTC Championship in Bucharest, Romania. Her travel was funded, in part, by International Programs and the Stanley-UI Foundation Support Organization. Whitaker's reflections from her March 2018 trip to Bucharest are below.

Knowing myself, I should have anticipated breaking my phone. When it happened, I really regretted bringing my old phone or an iPod touch so that I wouldn’t be without a device for a long period of time. Electronics are very expensive to buy in Uruguay and it is close to impossible to get electronics shipped here from the States. It would have been much easier if I had brought one just in case.