UChicago Study Abroad

Watch a playlist of the winning videos from our Study Abroad in 60 Seconds Contest!

2025–26 Prize-Winning Videos

First Prize: “A Typical Afternoon in Paris” by Ciara Kinney and Lena Tran, both in the Class of 2027 (Paris: Psychology)

Second Prize: “What I Expected” by Harlie Grenead, Class of 2027 (Seoul: Yonsei University Exchange Program)

Third Prize: “‘Little Bliss’: Moments in China” by Zeran Fei, Class of 2026 (Beijing: East Asia, Then and Now)

Honorable Mention: “Between Skyscrapers and Temples” by Erika Lenhardt, Class of 2027 (Hong Kong: Economics)

Congratulations to all of the winners!

A Typical Afternoon in Paris by Ciara Kinney and Lena Tran, both in the Class of 2027 / First Prize in the 2025–26 Study Abroad in 60 Seconds Video Contest / In Paris, enough can happen ...

Learn more about RLL Photo Prizes: https://rll.uchicago.edu/rll-photo-prize

Earlier this month, the Barcelona Civ in Spanish program enjoyed an excursion to see two iconic works of Catalan modernism, Casa Amatller and Casa Milà (“La Pedrera”). Thank you to graduate assistant Jenni Monroy for taking these photos of students on the rooftop of Casa Milà, designed by the architect Antoni Gaudí and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.

Congratulations to the Study Abroad Photo Contest winners! Thank you to all 111 students who participated in our 2025–26 contest—a UChicago College tradition since 1997!—and to our two longtime judges, who are themselves photographers and Study Abroad program alumni. Learn more about the photo contest: https://study-abroad.uchicago.edu/student-voices/photo-contest

Heads up! Submissions to the 2025–26 Study Abroad Photo Contest are due on Monday, May 4. Learn more: study-abroad.uchicago.edu/contests

Established over 25 years ago, the Study Abroad Photo Contest is a beloved UChicago College tradition. Student submissions are reviewed annually by two photographers and longtime judges, both of whom are Study Abroad program alumni. Winners receive prizes and are featured in a yearlong exhibit on the 2nd floor of Harper Memorial Library.

Enjoy these winning photos from the last 7 years of the contest!

Enjoy another SITG Dispatch – from Vienna – ahead of the Feb. 2 deadline for 2026 Summer International Travel Grant applications!

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SITG Dispatch from Vienna by Julia Volpp (Summer 2025)

Hallo! I’m Julia, a rising second-year at UChicago majoring in Public Policy Studies. Thanks to a Foreign Language Acquisition Grant, I’m studying German this summer at the University of Vienna Sprachenzentrum in Austria.

On a typical day, I start my morning with a latte from my favorite coffee shop near the University of Vienna’s main campus. I have class all morning, where I learn new vocabulary and grammar as I practice speaking, listening, reading, and writing in German. I typically grab lunch with friends from my course in the vicinity of our campus, then I head to my internship.

I am interning at the Austrian Institute for International Affairs, a foreign policy-focused think tank in Vienna. This summer, I’ve aided with research on economic security and the critical raw materials trade, in addition to writing my own article. I’ve loved the opportunity to be able to experience what working at a think tank looks like, and I’ve really enjoyed learning so much more about a field that I find fascinating.

After finishing work, I try to visit a new museum or another site in Vienna as often as possible. Then I head back to my apartment in a student dormitory, cook dinner either by myself or with friends, and complete my German homework for the night. I have loved living in Vienna – it’s a beautiful city with such kind, welcoming people – and the experience has made me examine my own experiences from a more global perspective.

I exit my comfort zone constantly when chatting with storeworkers or practicing conversing with people from my class in German during our break. I’ve picked up many phrases that I now automatically use in conversation without thinking about it.

My German is far from perfect, but I’m amazed that after only one year I’ve come so far. I’m very excited to continue to study German at UChicago and build upon what I learned this summer.
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Read the full dispatch on our website: https://study-abroad.uchicago.edu/student-voices/sitg-dispatch-vienna

Learn more about summer grants: https://study-abroad.uchicago.edu/sitg