Once upon a time I was an undergraduate student at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. It was the year 1991 and I had just finished a year of study abroad in Pecs, Hungary at Janus Pannonius University
Originally I had planned to go to Hungary for one semester, but the experience was so interesting (and challenging) I decided to spend the entire year.
It was a critically important decision in my life and career. Spending a full year in Hungary allowed me to do a deep dive into the context, culture and actually develop very strong Hungarian Language skills.
I had amazing professors who took me on all sorts of interesting journeys including doing research on economic development opportunities with Romani populations in rural Hungary, spending time in Transylavnia and more.
But this post isn’t so much about my study abroad. It is about when I returned and the power of a single mentor to impact one’s life. Upon starting my senior semester, I met with the director of the study abroad office at the university to talk about my experience. She brought up the idea of why don’t I apply for a Fulbright Student Fellowship.