Name: Dillin Parsons; Location: Australia/New Zealand; Program: Faculty Lead Agricultural Tour of Australia and New Zealand; Timeframe: May-June (2018); Major: Natural Resource Management/ Pre-Vet; Classification: Senior; Hometown: Abilene, Texas

• My Experience: I've been asked this question so many times since being back and it's really hard to think on the spot how to describe this trip. Given the time to sit down and write about it, I can only sum it up to life changing at the least. The memories made there as well as the people I met both far and near will forever be with me, I am confident that the experience has made be a better person and more insight into how amazing and gigantic our world is.
• Why Go: I believe it is no secret that anyone you speak to about studying abroad will testify to its worth and how they would do it again if given the chance. I had many of these conversations from my colleagues and friends throughout the years. Financially though it is a big burden and I did not want to put that on my family, so after discovering that my Terry Foundation as well as my college would help me so much and make it feasible I knew it was meant to be and that I would come back home with irreplaceable resources and knowledge which I fully believe I did looking back.
• Any Advice: Given my circumstance and the classes I needed to take I was only able to take part in my program which was a maymester session of around 20 days in total. Looking back and still today I wish I was still in those amazing countries exploring and experiencing more culture, people and places. So, with that being said my advice would be to be brave and go for a semester at a time. It seems like such a long time looking forward to it but when you are in the moment and looking back you can never have enough time.
• Favorite Part: For me, I was the only Natural Resources Management student on the trip and my concentration is wildlife biology. With this said I am truly passionate about nature and the amazing creatures this world has to showcase, while over there we were exposed to so many examples of this that I would never dream to see here in Texas or in the United States. Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, holding a koala, walking through the Australian Rainforest these stand out as some of the more special times during the trip.
• Looking Ahead: Looking to the future I can guarantee that I will be back to these two places sometime in my life and hopefully take my family with me so that they can experience the same amazing things I was able to as a young adult. But even beyond Australia and New Zealand I have such a greater desire to travel the world now and take in all there is out there. I love Texas and the USA but you're doing yourself a disservice to not see other cultures out there.

CONTACT: Cindy Akers, Associate Dean for Academic and Student Programs, Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-2808 or cindy.akers@ttu.edu

0216NM18 / Editor's Note: For detailed information on Davis College Study Abroad programs and how to apply, click here.

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