Non-Apparent Disabilities (e.g. learning, mental health-related, etc.)

Embracing Italy and Going with the Flow in Florence

Amanda had an amazing summer studying in Florence, Italy. She shares how her anxieties faded away or were talked through with others once overseas.

Zach's Gap Year: Volunteering Around the World

Zach talks about taking a year to travel abroad after high school and how he managed cultural differences related to his social anxiety and depression.

Chronic Adventures at Sea

For Semester at Sea students like Emily Block, time is measured in countries visited. Emily, who has a chronic health disability, hopes her blog will encourage others to travel the world.

My Jamaican Spring Break

The discovery that international exchange is not "one-size-fits-all" led Jeremiah Swisher to find a program that felt right for him. Jeremiah is a university student with high-functioning autism.

Able to Serve: The Modern Faces of HIV

For its inaugural overseas volunteer project, Volunteer Positive assembled a team of people living with HIV to serve as international volunteers in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Finding a New Normal in Peru

Volunteering at a health clinic in Lima, Peru offered Tracy Cherba an opportunity to share her strategies for managing diabetes with the community.

Featured Person: Tony Ive

Meet Tony, who indulged his passion for history and politics during a spring break in South Korea. Tony, who has ADHD and learning disabilities, explained how those ten days in Seoul altered his academic path.

Featured Person: Kathleen Coleman

Meet Kathleen, a study abroad alumna to Spain, who would like others to know that having a travel companion with Asperger's can enhance an already-unique experience.

Featured Person: Patrick T.

Meet Patrick, a business student who has Attention Deficit Disorder, and whose network of friends eased his transition into Barcelona life.

Featured Person: Sarah Funes

Meet Sarah, one of several young Americans and Syrians who collaborated on an effort to create the first disabled Muslim super hero.

Reflections on an International Career Teaching English

Roy Burkholder, a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language, has taken 19 trips to Asia in the course of his career. He has been living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) for many years and shares his experiences and strategies for enjoying the journey abroad.

Beyond Stereotyping

Yasushi Miyazaki's involvement with student groups on his US campus helped dispel stereotypes about Autism - including those he had believed about himself.

Great Britain's Lessons In and Out of the Classroom

Studying Criminal Justice in the United Kingdom on a Gilman scholarship helped prepare Jonathan Zelaya, who has a learning disability, for a career in law enforcement.

Adding India to the Geography of Life Experiences

Gilman scholarship recipient, Christena Weatherspoon, who has a learning and social anxiety disability, represented multiple kinds of American diversity while studying in India.

Dreams Come True in Italy and Costa Rica

Sarah Franz studied abroad in Florence, Italy on a University of Michigan Summer Abroad Program and participated in MIUSA's summer exchange in Costa Rica. Sarah has chronic health-related conditions and is Deaf. She uses English, ASL, and an FM system for communication access.

Bon Voyage! Life Lessons from My Travels in France

A desire to study and teach abroad in France and have an international education career motivated Allegra Johnson, who has rheumatoid arthritis, to take better care of herself than she did at the start of her college career.

Finding a Good Fit: Two Students Study Abroad with ADHD

For students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) like Jonathon and Paula, the differences in educational expectations may affect students in ways that typical accommodations don’t address.

The World is Within Reach for Young People with Brain Injuries

When Melissa Jensen made the decision to go abroad for the first time, she took charge of planning her volunteer experience in order to help rebuild structures in Mongolia. Melissa is an American college student from Wisconsin.

Studying Abroad in China with Diabetes

Elise Read spent a semester studying Chinese at the Beijing Normal University through a federally-funded NSEP Boren scholarship. In this narrative, Elise reflects on the preparations she arranged to manage her diabetes while abroad.

Internship with a National Council for International Visitors Member

Allison LePage, who has a learning disability, interned at Colleagues International in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Allison studied abroad in Europe for a summer while in college.