Me nearing the top of Mount Grappa taking a much-needed rest on a suspension bridge

Author: Thomas Bailey | Majors: Information Systems, Finance, Business Economics | Semester: Summer 2023

This summer, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the CIMBA study abroad program in Paderno del Grappa, Italy. I have wanted to attend CIMBA since the day I stepped foot on campus at the University of Arkansas. I initially wanted to attend in the summer of 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic occurred. Then in the summer of 2021, I needed to take summer classes to fulfill a minor I wanted to complete. In the summer of 2022, I took an internship at Walmart. Starting my senior year in the Fall of 2022, I was unsure if I would be able to take part in this experience that I so badly wanted to. I had hesitations attending CIMBA as a senior: I wondered if I would make friends, if the courses I took would be substantial, and if this would apply to my future goals. I quickly found out that this would be the experience of a lifetime and that I would learn lessons academically, professionally, and personally that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

I have known about CIMBA for a while. I have been friends with Dr. Molly Rapert and her family for many years and have always known how great of a program it was. The key things that drew me to CIMBA were the extraordinary faculty and courses offered, unique campus location, and weekend travel flexibility.

For my classes, I took The Global Consumer with UARK’s very own, Dr. Rapert, and Global Economics with Dr. Eric Olson from the University of Tulsa. Both classes and instructors exceeded my expectations. In Global Consumer, we had a discussion-based class that was derived from readings on current topics that Dr. Rapert curated for us. Topics ranged from China’s Belt and Road Initiative to child soldiers in Africa. Our discussions of Chinese actions in developing countries have expanded my worldview and piqued my interest in international economics. Dr. Rapert is a model educator and her impact on students is immediately noticeable. UARK and CIMBA are much better places with her in the faculty. At first, I thought Global Economics was just going to be an entry level economic theory course, something that would be just a refresher for me, but I quickly learned otherwise. We explored many current topics including the SVB banking crisis, post-COVID inflation, and a deep dive into the 2008 financial crisis. This course reignited my interest in finance and economics to the point I am now considering graduate school in one of those fields. Dr. Olson showed us how to ask questions about our current economic state and the lenses we can look at these issues through to solve them. In both classes, we took field trips to local businesses. We got to see firsthand businesses ranging from an artisanal pottery manufacturer to a completely automated cheese storage facility. Every field trip we attended was very exciting and highly beneficial. The classes differed mainly from UARK classes in that these classes were highly discussion based. This is something that I usually do not like, but my professors successfully implemented this learning style. The CIMBA program also provided us with lessons on professional norms like dining etiquette. CIMBA effectively transforms its students into well-rounded professionals.

This program advanced my professional goals by molding me into a much more perceptive and globally aware professional. In Global Consumer, my eyes were opened to global issues I had no idea about, which I have no doubt will be greatly beneficial to me in my career. In Global Economics, I was shown how to view economic data through 4 different specific economic lenses, something I had not been exposed to while at UARK.

One of the main reasons I attended CIMBA was the flexible travel weekends. Class for the week ends at noon on Thursdays, allowing students long weekends to travel where they please. I had the privilege to travel to Florence, Nice and Monte Carlo, and Amsterdam. I could write pages and pages about the food, art, architecture, and people I experienced on these weekend trips. My favorite weekend had to be the weekend going to Monte Carlo for the Monaco Grand Prix. However, a close second would be my weekend in Amsterdam. Being able to see paintings done by Dutch masters like Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Van Gogh at the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum is something I will never forget. I have included a photo of me and my friends in front of the statue of David in Florence.

Since Paderno del Grappa is situated at the foot of the Dolomites and Mount Grappa, there were numerous hiking and climbing opportunities near campus. One day, I had the opportunity to climb Mount Grappa via ferrata, which is climbing alongside a bolted-in iron line up the mountain, with 2 other students. This was one of the coolest things I have ever done in my life, and one of the most memorable days of my 4 weeks in Italy. In one of the pictures, you can see me near the top of Mount Grappa after a 3 hour and 2000 vertical foot climb.

I wholeheartedly recommend this program to any student that has an interest in attending. If you want an authentic Italian experience, coupled with extraordinary faculty and wonderful travel opportunities, this is a perfect program. The only thing I wish I had known beforehand is that I should have packed much lighter. I would have been able to successfully get through the weeks on campus and weekends around Europe on a much lighter load of clothes and without having to keep up with a carry-on suitcase. The first thing I am going to do when I get home is go to Taco Bell. I have never craved a Crunchwrap Supreme and a Gordita Crunch more badly than this past month. I am going to make a stop on the way home from the airport.

Since leaving CIMBA, I have been solo traveling around Europe. I have been to Slovenia to see Ljubljana and Lake Bled; Croatia to see the medieval city of Dubrovnik; Czechia to experience Prague; Poland to explore Krakow and visit the Auschwitz-Birkenau site and museum; Austria to visit the world class museums in Vienna; France to meet up with some friends in Paris; and I now write this blog post from a hostel in Madrid, Spain. The solo travel experience has been extremely unique, but very fruitful. I have learned many things about myself and highly recommend it to others. It is a fantastic way to push comfort zones and find new limits.