Athalia Windham, TE ’27 Shares Her Study Abroad Experience

Growing up, Athalia Windham always heard stories from her parents detailing their first year of marriage spent studying in Spain, and she always dreamed of having a similar experience. 

As a sophomore studying textile engineering at the Wilson College of Textiles, Windham participated in the Spring Classic program at the NC State Center in Prague. During her time in Prague, Windham took a variety of courses, from history of design to differential equations. She also had the opportunity to visit numerous countries and historical sites across Europe on her trip. 

Exploring Prague

In class, Windham dove deeper into not only her major subjects, but also the passions she holds outside of her field of study. By taking design and architecture-centered courses in Prague, she says she was able to connect with the Czech culture. This newfound passion made studying in historic libraries a favorite part of her time abroad.

“Prague especially has a lot of historic, beautiful reading rooms and libraries that are open to students and the public,” Windham, a Centennial Scholar, says.

These classes and experiences helped Windham appreciate the architecture and design aspects she saw not only in Prague but around Europe during her travels.

Over the course of her semester abroad, Windham became immersed in the culture in Prague. Outside of her classes, she spent her time exploring the city, finding new places to study and building new friendships. 

Traveling Europe

During her time abroad, Windham traveled to 13 different European countries and visited some of the most famous architectural monuments in the world. This time spent exploring a new continent opened her up to the idea of completing her master’s program abroad.

“I am now looking at graduate school programs in Germany and Sweden, which is something that I never would have done before going on this trip,” Windham says.

While studying abroad and getting to see some of the most famous historical sites in the world already fulfilled a dream of hers, getting engaged in Rome truly made the whole trip a fairytale.

“Being in Rome and getting engaged after seeing the Vatican,the Colosseum and the Roman Forum was  the cherry on top of the wonderful cake that was studying abroad,” Windham says.

Encouraging prospective study abroad students

Though studying abroad was a lifelong goal of Windham’s, it was still a scary journey to embark on. Deciding to move across the world from everyone she knew was a nerve-wracking decision to make. Knowing that this is a feeling many students interested in studying abroad face, Windham’s advice is to take the risk.

“It is going to be scary, and it is also going to be the most fun experience you’ve ever had, and you shouldn’t let fear make that decision for you,” Windham says.

Before her study abroad trip, Windham had never traveled by herself. Her experience in Prague taught her about independence and allowed her to learn about herself in a new and exciting environment.

“When you come out of it, you’re going to be so much stronger and you will learn that putting yourself in that slight discomfort is really beneficial,” Windham says.