0 .V Page 12-Sunday, April 11, 1982-The Michigan Daily The Michigan Daily-Sunday, Study abroad offers fun, learning Dive into another woi By Kristin Stapleton If your summer plans include a con- tinuation of academic pursuits, you might consider studying in an at- mosphere quite different from that of Ann Arbor. Opportunities for study abroad are waiting to be discovered by the student in search of an adventure as well as an educational experience. The first place for the serious student to start looking for study abroad programs is at the Overseas Oppor- tunities Office in the International Cen- ter adjacent to West Quad. An advisor there will be very willing to help the prospective traveler sift through the mounds of material available about study abroad. BECAUSE THE NUMBER of oppor- tunities available for summer study is so great, Jim Gehlher, an advisor at the office, asserts, "There's virtually nothing a student can't do, if he or she wants to." Gehler advises, however, students to plan their study experience very carefully to avoid disappointments. There are several types of programs, he said, and each has distinct advan- tages and disadvantages. One of the most popular forms of study abroad is a University sponsored program. The University currently of- fers ten programs of summer study abroad including two new ones-one in Paris, and one on a kibbutz in Israel. THE UNIVERSITY SPONSORED programs are advantageous because they provide in-residence credit. This avoids the problems of transferring credit. The programs are a little more expensive than some foreign university sponsored programs. Similarly, programs of other American univer- sities are generally more expensive. Daniel Mattern, a University student who spent a summer in Austria on a Xavier University sponsored program, said that there are advantages to going with an American university. "It's easier to get credits if you go through an American university," Mat- tern said. Choice of a program, however, "depends on the student's purposes," he said. Mattern explained that the program in Salzburg, Austria, offered him "rigorous" training in German and political science. He added that the wide variety of activities available in the program "sort of competed with the study aspect of it." ANOTHER SORT OF program available to students is offered by American Institute for Foreign Study and the Council on International Educational Exchange. These are organizations offering summer and year-long study opportunities in a variety of foreign countries. One Michigan student who par- ticipated in an AIFS program to London described her experience as mind- expanding. Carolyn Gillespie said, "Study abroad is worthwhile because it decreases your myths about other places." As far as the AIFS program is con- cerned, Gillespie thought there was not enough contact with advisors. DIRECT ENROLLMENT IN a foreign university is another option, but Gehlher said this is rarely possible because most foreign universities are not open in the summer. "Study in the summer is almost an exclusively American phenomenon," he said. The Overseas Opportunities Office also has a long list of year-long study abroad programs. Many of these and the summer programs are still open to applicants. Regardless of whether a student wishes to study abroad for a year or a summer, in Budapest or Florence, for a worthwhile, exciting experience it is important to plan ahead. (Amateur and Commercial Photofinishing) HOUR Ektachrome SLIDE Processing On the Hour 10 to 3 Weekdays at 3120 Packard Only Regular Prices! 4 Hour Service at 691 So. Maple and 1315 So. University In by 9 or 1 By Janet Rae It's the shock that hits you first, no matter where you're diving. If it's the Pacific, that frigid water creeping into your quarter-inch wetsuit does the trick. But if it's the Caribbean, your body notices only the weightlessness as your eyes experience that first shock to the senses. In either case, it's an un- mistakable feeling of embarking on something distinctly foreign and eerily beautiful. Scuba diving is an all-sensory experience unlike anything the everyday world of dry land has to offer. I was born and raised on the shores of ideal scuba diving territory - coastal Los Angeles and California's Channel Islands - without being aware of my good luck. Fortunately, since I return to the beach every summer, I have been able to make up for some of my lost time. BUT MY FELLOW "natives" remain ignorant of their opportunity. For some strange reason, beach people in general just don't scuba, despite their notoriety for the variety of physical activity they put themselves through in the name of health and pleasure. Growing up on the beach you learn young you can't really qualify as a true native of the coast un- til you have mastered the art of surfing, skateboarding, or at the very least, volleyball. I was, and will remain, a deviate. I dive. Southern California offers some of the best diving territory in the world. Internationally, enthusiasts of the sport sing the praises of the sights surroun- ding the Channel Islands and lavish en- vy on those who have the good fortune to live near such a paradise. I was on a dive boat last summer off Grand Cayman Island in the British West Indies, preparing for my first ex- perience in Caribbean scuba. As the boat churned toward one of the more popular reefs, fellow divers tried to ex- plain the little dangers mingled with the wndersd of what I was about to see. "EELS," ONE whispers in awe. "Moray eels down there the size of your body. And barracuda too." "Don't scare her," insists another. "Really, now, they won't hurt you," he soothes. "I know," I reply. "We have them at home." "THE COLORS. That's what's unique down here. You'll see little slugs, they call them nudibranchs, every color of the rainbow." "We've got nudinranchs, too," I respond. "Fish that'll swim right up to your mask to say hello," pipes up another diver. "AND THOSE." I sigh. The other. divers begin to look an- noyed and insist on knowing where I do my diving. Ripples of awe pass through the gathering crowd when I tell them the most popular dive spot is Catalina Island. One explains that, second only to Carribean diving or the Red Sea, he has wanted to dive Southern Califor- nia's Channel Islands. Apparently, my scuba training ground is a paradise in my own front yard. So why do people shy away from this most enjoyable of sports? Non-divers who snorkel will present a number of excuses - too expensive, too much of a hassle with all the equipment, too dangerous, takes too much strength - the list is endless, whether valid or not. Dily Ph THE COAST OF Grand Cayman Island in the British West Indies provides excellent oppor scuba diving. The process of becoming "certified" - the term used for a diver who has com- pleted an accredited training program - is surrounded by rumors and sup- positions among those people with little understanding of the sport. SCUBA - AN acronym for "self- contained underwater breathing ap- paratus" - was not really a developed sport until the 1950s. Early scuba divers were a hardy lot by necessity. Their swimming muscles had to be toned to compensate for lack of safety features and buoyancy that could drown a physically unprepared person. Training programs were an exhausting challenge which featured several mile- long swims and half-hour drills of treading water, in addition to instruc- tion on use of the scuba equipment. 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