A semester abroad experience ignited a passion for teaching and travel for Jake Pelland '16, who now works as a teacher in Kirchdorf an der Krems (about an hour south of Linz) in Austria. He came to UVM with strong skills in German but became fascinated with the Russian language and culture. "First, it seemed like an interesting language to learn. Second, Russian politics are always fascinating, and it fits well with my growing interest in international politics," he explains. Pelland's most inspiring experience at UVM? A semester in St. Petersburg, Russia. "It was the first time I had ever left the country, and, as I stayed with a Russian family that spoke no English, the first time I had ever been in an environment where I could not fall back on my native language."

A native of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Will Julien ’17 planned to use his double major in biochemistry and Russian as a springboard into an international business career, possibly in pharmaceuticals, agriculture, or medicine. Julien received a Critical Language Scholarship through the U.S. State Department, which provided a free intensive summer training program in a language considered critical to national security. Beginning in the fall of 2017, he taught university-level students at Tyumen State Medical University with the support of a Fulbright grant. “Studying the language gave me opportunities I couldn’t have even imagined—whether it was spending weekends in Saint Petersburg and Moscow, or living in Siberia. My degree in Russian also seemed to attract the attention of employers.”

Julien credited the mentorship of his language professors at UVM as key to his success. “The longer I spent abroad, the more thankful I was for the level of preparation I received at UVM, especially considering the occasional logistical challenges of a double major. The level of dedication to the students as well as the depth of knowledge there was incredible.”

Charlie Sheffy, of Southington, Conn., graduated from UVM in 2014. Thanks to a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship, Sheffy headed to Bavaria, Germany in 2016 to hone his skills as a teacher. “After working for two years in the field, I want to re-focus my skills by working as an assistant to a master teacher, where I can study pedagogy, curricula design, and best practices. In addition, I would like to make myself more marketable by becoming fluent in written and spoken German.” Fulbrights are yearlong fellowships which enable seniors, recent graduates, and graduate students to live abroad and represent the United States as a part of the world’s largest intellectual and cultural exchange fellowship.