Jennie Wonderlin, a Des Moines native, graduated in 2018 from the University of Iowa. She is now a community healthcare worker at Primary Healthcare, Inc. and she gets to put into practice what she learned during her college career.

Brett Burk took his UI education to new heights, studying abroad, getting a Fulbright to Taiwan, and using what he learned to dedicate himself to helping others.

Getting accepted to the University of Iowa was the beginning of many “firsts” for Ana Arzate and her family. As a first-generation college student, attending college meant taking a new path no one in her family had taken before. As time progressed, she felt ready for another “first”—a summer internship in Paris, France, with IES Internships, made possible with a prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman scholarship. She lived with a host family and worked at Archive Valley, a multinational online company that digitally connects people with archive resources from around the world. Arzate experienced living in a major global city, learned to use the Paris Métro, and was immersed in Parisian culture.

Hometown Hawkeye Elle Wignall talks about the influence of her study abroad experience on her writing career.

Hometown Hawkeye Andrew Broderick talks about his path to the UI Physical Therapy program and how his study abroad experience as an undergraduate student confirmed his interest in physical therapy as a career.

Ladroma studied French, Spanish, and International Studies: Development at the UI. A presentation about a study abroad program piqued his interest in the possibility of studying in France. A Regents Study Abroad scholarship paved the way for Ladroma’s opportunity to immerse himself in the European culture. One benefit of studying abroad that Ladroma didn’t anticipate was meeting his future wife, Ashley (DeCarlo) Ladroma, B.A, communication studies, French, at a presentation in Lyon, France. The couple grew up just 38 miles from each other (Ashley is from Harlan, Iowa), but first met in France.