As a construction engineering major who loves soccer and who also needed credit to finish his degree, Fabian Roman discovered a once in a lifetime opportunity – he could sign up for the SDSU Summer Civil Engineering Study Abroad program to complete his degree in Krakow, Poland, and at the same time could travel to Warsaw to see the 2012 Euro Cup.
What he didn’t realize is that he could actually combine both sport and study since Poland had just recently developed its infrastructure for the 2012 Euro Cup. According to the Economist, $440 million dollars were used to build a new stadium. Roman was able to experience the new soccer stadium, which gave him new perspectives on infrastructure and other valuable engineering knowledge. Roman also learned a lot about himself while in Poland. “I am a person with more character now. This experience made me a more open-minded person who can now take any challenge with more capacity. Poland is an amazing country. It was a great experience,” he says.
What is more important is that Roman now sees the value of international experience and how it can enrich one’s life especially from an employer standpoint. He adds, “International experience is attractive for employers since they know that not everyone will do it. I think that people with strong character take the risk of going to live in another country. That is something that I am sure a company would want to see in a potential employee.
