by Emmy Frigo

Meredith Pratt (’21) is an international studies alumna who spent a summer in Italy on the Baylor in Tuscany study abroad program. Her experience there has helped form her future career choices, and Baylor’s study abroad availability and prowess actually helped her make the choice to come to Baylor in the first place.

Meredith Pratt, Class of 2021

Ms. Pratt’s choice to study abroad coincided well with her major. Because the international studies major requires more language courses “going a step above other curriculums”, she felt she was even more prepared and encouraged to travel abroad. Meredith studied abroad the summer of 2018, which meant she attended the program the summer after her freshman year, quite soon for most students who choose to study abroad. Despite her young age, because she got to stay with a host family, essentially acting like a surrogate child for a family with no children of their own, she was really well taken care of, and able to adjust quickly to the Italian culture.

“They would take me shopping, and every single morning I would come downstairs and my breakfast would be ready. They just took such good care of me.”

Meredith thoroughly enjoyed her experience, and is happy to have made friends as close as family, who she still speaks to. Her host family even reached out during the COVID-19 pandemic to check in on her in the United States.

Study abroad isn’t just for fun, it also helped Ms. Pratt with informing her career interests. Meredith is looking for jobs now, and has been looking for work with an international or even a more specific Italian focus. Even if she doesn’t work within that field, she says her time in Italy has truly sparked a love of all things Italy, and if she gets the chance she would love to move back. Until then, Italian cooking classes sound like a good idea!