By: Grace Carballo ‘17

After Perrito Moreno and our short stay in Calafate, Francesca and I hopped on a 3 hour bus to get to El Chalten. We lucked out and were assigned the best seats, front row with a view that couldn’t be beat, but unfortunately a couple nabbed what was rightfully ours and we didn’t have the heart to ask them to move.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

I hate to brag but several of my peers have endorsed me in Social Media on LinkedIn and with that, I feel qualified to say that I have scoured Instagram and Facebook (and even briefly perused Twitter) for the very best and brightest #USCGrad photos. Last year the Class of 2015 set the bar high but like any good Trojan would, the class of 2016 grads rose to the challenge ambitiously, courageously, and skillfully. It wasn’t easy but I have selected, in no particular order, the 16 best #USCGrad pictures to represent the legacy of the wonderful Class of 2016. If you think you deserve to be on the list, submit your photos to Trojans360 and maybe also consider adjusting your privacy settings on social media to be a bit more lax.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

Now that I’m ~almost~ a senior in college, I can truthfully say I’ve done my fair share of studying in my day. Some of it was productive, some of it was fueled by procrastination, some of it was downright intolerable, but it doesn’t have to be. As I begin my midterms this semester in Argentina, I’d obviously rather be doing something else, but at least I feel like I know how to prepare and tackle the tasks at hand. This ain’t m first rodeo.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

When I moved into my Casa Compartida in the Palermo barrio of Buenos Aires, I knew nothing about the house or the neighborhood- my friend Katy did all the hunting and I just showed up with cash for the deposit at the address she sent me. Of course, my parents immediately asked me about the location. “Is it safe?” I think so. “Is it clean?” I wouldn’t eat off the floor. “Are you close to campus?” Not in the traditional sense of the word…

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

I entered USC as an Undecided Major and I hope to exit triumphantly next spring with 2 majors and 2 minors, pending how some of my abroad credits transfer in. Though I do not work in the Admissions Office, I do in fact, know almost all of the majors USC offers simply because I’ve considered declaring most of them.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

This week, from April 11 to April 15 is Sexual Assault Awareness Week at USC. The gravity of the problem of sexual assaults on college campuses is starting to be recognized nationwide and hopefully this week will serve as a step towards addressing the issue on our own campus. If you or someone close to you is a survivor of sexual assault, then you know how important recognizing this week is, although it can be difficult or triggering.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

When you’re adjusting to a new city, of course you need to give yourself some time to figure out how everything works. Waiting to feel comfortable and for some semblance of confidence is frustrating to say the least, especially when you can’t help making comparisons to how things work “so smoothly” back home.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

In my experience, the most difficult times abroad, whether for the culture shock or the homesickness, are during holidays back home. If you would like anecdotal proof, last Thanksgiving I was probably going on hour ten or so working in front of my laptop and a fan on my ISP in Nicaragua when I FaceTimed by family during Thanksgiving dinner. Eating a bag of peanuts and raisins from the pulpería while everyone I missed dearly passed the phone around mid-feast, including my new “brother” Kevin (who’s from Nicaragua studying in my home town), was a less than festive experience.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

Last Thursday, I did what any productive exchange student would do in between classes- checked my instagram and ate yesterday’s dinner leftovers from my new tupperware. Such multi-tasking was dangerous and nearly caused me to choke on a spoonful of lentils because within the first few photos alone, I realized my fellow Trojans were with Hillary Rodham Clinton.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

Last week I went to my first asado, which is essentially what in the U.S. we would call a barbecue. After speaking with the Argentinian students present, apparently this wasn’t a “real asado” because it was more of a meet and greet (or meat and greet if you catch my drift) for the international students than the extensive sit-down affair that asados normally are. Still, I’m counting it as an asado because it had all the makings of one (chorripan, which is sausage on a toasted bun, a parilla, which is the big open-fire grill, and lots of sides and ensaladas, thank goodness.)

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

Last weekend I went to Lollapalooza, a musical festival, that’s become quite global with locations in São Paulo, Santiago, Berlin, Bogotá, and of course, my home of Chicago, where I first experienced the magic. This time, however, I experienced Lollapalooza Argentina in San Isidro, a suburb of Buenos Aires.

By: Grace Carballo ‘17

When you study abroad you have a few different types of programs to choose from. You can go to one of the USC Abroad locations, which I did last summer in Madrid, where you are taught by USC professors but in a new city. You can also choose to go through a study abroad provider, like CIES or SIT, which I did last fall through SIT Nicaragua. The benefits to going with a study abroad provider are, in my experience, a strong relationship with the local community, reciprocity, authenticity, and well-organized group excursions included in program costs. Currently, I am doing a direct enrollment study abroad experience, which means I am enrolled as a student as this University and take classes alongside Argentinian students. During my time at USC, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know a number of exchange students, and it’s been very interesting to now be on the other side of that.