Studying Abroad in Morocco

Map courtesy of www.infoplease.com

People, both in the U.S. and in Morocco, always ask me why I am studying Arabic. As one woman on a train from Casablanca to Rabat said, “I can use English for work. What are you going to do with Arabic?” Honestly, I don’t have a great answer for them. When I got to college, I thought I would take Arabic, since it was different from any other language I had learned, and it looked beautiful. Very soon after I started studying it, I decided I was going to study abroad in an Arabic-speaking country.


Soon after I made that decision, I decided I wanted to go to Africa, and I felt myself drawn to Morocco. Maybe it was how close it was to Europe. Maybe it was the only country in North Africa my father was really comfortable sending me. Maybe it was the fact that I went to the study abroad fair my sophomore year and found a program in Morocco called “Human Rights and Multiculturalism.” Actually, it was most likely that last one.

A tile floor at the center where I take my classes.
I think it dates back to the 1600s.

The program allowed me to live with a host family, which I think is the best way to learn the language, but still had classes in English. I could study abroad in Africa, a continent I had always wanted to visit, but I could be close enough to travel in Europe in the summer. I could learn about Human Rights, which was my major, but in a completely different context from Barnard.


So that’s how I found myself in Rabat’s old medina, learning Arabic in the morning and hearing about human rights in Morocco in the afternoon, all while eating copious amounts of almond cookies (I’m literally eating them as I write this).

The best part is, I’m getting credit for everything I’m doing in Morocco. This includes my Arabic class, my human rights classes, and the month of individual study I will be starting in a week. This also includes the experiential learning part of the program, which has allowed me to visit NGOs across Rabat, speak to people around the city about women’s rights, and even ride a camel!



Street art in the gorgeous Oudaya neighborhood of Rabat

In addition, I am paying the same amount to study abroad as I would if I were at Barnard. Barnard handles all the tuition for whatever program you choose to do, and if you qualify for grant aid, it is applied even if you study abroad. Since I get a fair amount to help to cover my tuition, I didn’t have to pay extra for the program I am doing. Some people have scholarships that also cover their room and board, but even if you don’t, the Office of Financial Aid can help you figure out how to afford a semester abroad.
 

One of my favorite things about Barnard is the help they give to every student so that study abroad is open to the largest number of people possible, and the school certainly helped me!

Bella



The Hassan II mosque in Casablanca, the biggest mosque
in the country