For my second semester abroad in the Global Bachelor’s Program, I decided to step off the beaten path and study at University College Maastricht in the southern part of the Netherlands. While I initially thought that having studied abroad once already, it would be easier for me to get settled into my new city, I found that as a Hidden Gems program, my experience in Maastricht was vastly different from my first experience on a GW Signature Program with my Global Bachelor’s Belfast cohort.
When I first arrived, I found that the culture shock was much more challenging to get used to than on a GW Signature Program. Without any other GW students or GW faculty support on site, the first few weeks were rough trying to adapt and figure out how things worked on my own, such as the various Dutch train systems, how to rent and ride a bike (gears or no gears? How do I lock it?), and translating all the unfamiliar Dutch labels in the grocery stores into English on my phone. Fortunately, I found that many locals were willing and kind enough to help me out, whether letting me borrow their phone to call the train operator’s customer service when I had no signal or helping me pick out a good laundry detergent brand for the first time in the grocery store.
Not having an in-built group of other GW study abroad students on the trip with me was also an adjustment I had to get used to. Especially when the culture shock was hitting me hard and I found myself self-isolating in the beginning, I realized that I had to make a much more active, purposeful effort to seek out new friends and surround myself with others for my new support system. I reached back out to friends I made during UCM’s exchange student orientation and I also explored the student organizations in Maastricht. I auditioned for Macbeth with the Alles is Drama theater organization and since joining I feel like I’ve finally found my home-away-from-home in Maastricht.
Lastly, without having staff-organized co-curricular programming on my GW Exchange, I’ve been organizing my own excursions around the Netherlands and surrounding regions to supplement my learning in class and fulfill my study abroad goals. For example, I learned in my medieval history class about how Charlemagne established the capital of his Frankish Carolingian Empire in Aachen, modern-day Germany. When I went to visit an old friend living in Aachen one weekend (she had studied abroad at my high school our freshman year!), I made sure to make a stop at the Aachen Cathedral, which was built under Charlemagne and is one of the only Catholic cathedrals with an octagonal nave because of Charlemagne’s inspiration from and admiration of the Romans. I’m also planning an upcoming day trip to visit the European Parliament in Brussels with a family friend who works there to help supplement what I’m learning in my European Foreign Policy class. Additionally, since one of my principal reasons for studying abroad in the Netherlands was to explore the master’s programs here, I made sure to carve out time to visit the University of Amsterdam’s Master’s Open Week in February and meet with master’s students from Leiden University in the Hague to explore my options for post-graduation.
All in all, while studying on a Hidden Gems program has had its own challenges for being a more independent program without as many other GW students or faculty support, my time so far has been incredibly rewarding to forge a new sense of belonging in my community, tailor my program to my individual interests, and gain a greater sense of self-confidence and trust in myself because of the challenges I’ve overcome on my own. While larger programs like GW Study programs and provider programs may come with more luxuries and perks, if you give the smaller GW Exchanges and Hidden Gems programs a chance, you’ll be astounded by how much more independence you will grow into as a person!
Maya-David Teittinen
Spring 2025 – GW Exchange - University College Maastricht
Fall 2023 – GW Global Bachelor's Program - Belfast Semester
Elliott School of International Affairs
International Affairs Major
The Global Bachelor’s Program