Name: Christina Romero
Age: 22
School: University of Northern Colorado
Year: First-year graduate student pursuing Master’s
Area of Study: Communication Studies
Bachelor’s: Communication Studies and Journalism and Mass Communications (editorial emphasis)
Work history: I started out as a news reporter for The Mirror; became an assistant editor my second semester as a freshman; the news editor my sophomore year; and I have recently stepped down from being the editor in chief my junior year. My senior year of college I was hired as a writer for the public relations office at UNC. I have also been an intern for the Greeley Tribune, where I learned a lot about visual media (building graphics, as well as shooting and editing video). The other company I have worked for is Echostar, which is part of Dish Network. This place helped me appreciate getting my degree and is also where I earned most of my money for my first trip abroad to Barcelona, Spain.
The Global Student
I have seen the purple mountain majesties, driven past the amber waves of grains, and I have been from sea to shining sea. I am ready to see more than America the Beautiful and I want to learn more about the human race.
The main reason I have been to so many places (see list below) is due to my travels as an athlete. I started playing competitive softball when I was 9 years old. Through the years I played for teams that would help me reach my initial goal of playing college ball. For five years I traveled with my softball teams and learned that I craved to see new places. But it wasn’t just about seeing different places, it was also about learning the history of that place, of the people, and overall, learn about culture.
While waiting for my journalism classes to open I took additional liberal arts courses in communication, sociology, psychology, women studies and philosophy. Although I’m far from being an expert in any of these fields, I have come to appreciate a lot of the ideas and theories created by those who are experts in these fields. And like any other person who has question the meaning of life, I decided to personalize that question and figure out what I believe my purpose in life is. What I discovered is that your purpose or meaning may change with the different stages of life, but for now I have decided that my purpose in life is to learn as much as I can about myself and the world, which is why I have decided to become a global student.
This probably sounds really deep and somewhat philosophical, but I enjoy learning. Probably the biggest thing I want to do is get past any ethnocentric thoughts and have an open mind.
So, for this blog (which is my first by the way) I hope to utilize my journalistic skills to inform and entertain my audience. I plan on enjoying myself well I’m abroad, but I also want to provide a blog that others can live vicariously through. Barcelona was the first place I travled to abroad, but it won’t be my last. Summer of 2011 I hope to visit Italy!
States I have visited: Arizona, California, Colorado (home), Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
States I have not visited: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
States I will visit in the future: Alaska, Hawaii, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Tennessee.
History and Future of this Blog
This blog was first started in May 2009 while I was entering my senior year of college. Initially started to help fellow travelers with their journey’s abroad and provide a vicarious learning experience, it will continue to be used to document future travels (national and international).
Hi Christina,
What a wounderful experience. Thanks for sharing. An UNC Alumni of 60, your reporting of your European experience allowed me to reminisce of my trips in 82 and the EXPO 92 in Sevilla. The dollar exchange was way much better then. Continue to explore and experience the wonders of the world. Congratulations on your fine reporting.
John
I read your blog to find some opportunity and guidance I’m interested in journalism, history, all the things you’re interested in also. Being a senior hat’s your advice for incoming freshman that want to do study abroad and travel the world during college? I’m interested in discovering America from afar and transcending beyond my radar. College is an amazing experience. What’s your advice and tips on academics?
John, thank you for reading.
Kathy, my best advice for a worldly experience is to find a liberal arts school with classes that appeal to you. The University of Northern Colorado has a liberal arts core and for me it has been the best fit because I have taken classes in my majors (journalism and communication) but also psychology, sociology, history, economics, english, chemistry and much more, all of which have given me different perceptions of the world.
As for studying abroad, you’ll have to really get to know yourself in your first year or two of college so that you can gauge how long is best for you and how far you wish to travel. I wanted to go during the summer between my junior and senior year because that gave me an opportunity to become familiar with my university, the available programs and time to save money. I was a reporter for my school newspaper, which I think helped me meet new people and learn from their experiences of traveling abroad. If you want to get into journalism, try working for your school newspaper. At UNC you have to do an entrance essay before being able to declare journalism as a major, so while you wait for the application process, or are looking at your options, working at the school newspaper will help you determine if journalism is for you.
I hope this helps! If you have more questions, let me know and I can e-mail you instead! Otherwise, best of luck in your new journey!