Help Courtney Study in Germany!

Courtney Schumaker Start Date: Mar 28, 2014 - End Date: Jul 25, 2014
  • Study/Degree Abroad
  • Intern Abroad
  • Educational/Research Trip

My Travel Story

by: Courtney Schumaker Start Date: Mar 28, 2014 - End Date: Jul 25, 2014
  • Study/Degree Abroad
  • Intern Abroad
  • Educational/Research Trip
To My Fellow Human Beings,

My name is Courtney Schumaker and it is my pleasure to announce that I have been accepted to be a participant in a prestigious fellowship program known as the Cultural Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX for short). It is a fellowship funded by the German Bundestag and U.S. Congress that each year provides 75 German and 75 American Young Professionals the opportunity to spend one year in each others’ countries, studying, interning, and living with hosts on a cultural immersion program. (For more information about the program feel free to visit https://cbyx.info)

The program begins in Washington D.C. where the rest of the participants and I will attend and orientation seminar from July 28-July 30, 2014 before we fly to Germany on July 31, 2014. I cannot even begin to explain how excited I am for this opportunity. I have been studying German since I was a Sophomore in High School and since then (over the past 7 years) it has become a major interest of mine as well as a huge part of my identity. Anyone who knows me can tell you how much I love the language, country, and culture of Germany and how dedicated I am to making it a part of my career post-college. In fact, were the chance to arise for me to take a full-time job there after college I wouldn’t even hesitate to accept. This program is a huge step towards that dream and I am ecstatic to have been chosen.

While the program itself covers my flights to and from Germany at the beginning and end of the year as well as my tuition, I will still be required to pay for basic living expenses while abroad, travel costs to Washington D.C. (where the group flies out from at the beginning of the program), travel from New York (where the group flies in to at the end of the year) back to my home, and a $300 security deposit for the program. The heads of the program require that each participant have 4,500 euros minimum (that's roughly $6,188) for living expenses before we leave and stress that this is an absolute minimum and it would be wise to be more in the 5,500 euro or more range.

Due to the way the program functions, I will be unable to apply for Financial Aid and therefore need to come up with these costs myself. As I am still in school, this is not an amount of money that I have on hand which is why I am asking for your assistance. While I plan to do my best to raise money by working this summer and doing odd jobs for extra cash, I am concerned that four months is not enough time for me to raise this money on my own. I would truly appreciate any donations toward this trip, every dollar helps!

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at clschuma@mtu.edu

Sincerely,
Courtney