Since the opening of the Office of International Education in the summer of 2012, Landmark’s Study Abroad options have been growing by leaps and bounds. While holding onto our very popular programs (such as Chile and Ireland, both of which have been running for years), we are adding new and exciting programs. Alumni are welcome to join in the fun and adventure. Email Peg Alden, director of international education, at [email protected], or visit the Study Abroad page for more info.
We spoke with Ben Lachman ’12 about his Study Abroad trip to the U.K. as an alumnus.
1) How did you learn about the course?
In the early spring of 2013, after connecting with the Alumni Relations Office, I was excited to learn about the new opportunity for alumni to continue the Landmark experience through study abroad. I was ecstatic! I had meant to take advantage of the opportunity while I was at Landmark, but due to a self-inflicted heavy course load, I was never able to fit it in. It saddened me, because I had hoped to go on study abroad before I left, but just figured I’d wait until my next college to travel abroad. After going over various options, I settled on the trip to the U.K. taught by Professors Lucy Stamp and Dan Miller, with the course focus being Travel Writing.
2) How did you find it beneficial to be an alumnus?
As an alum, I just didn’t think that such an opportunity would be offered before I had transferred to another college for my B.A. I am extremely thankful that the proposal was made and approved. Landmark is known by its students, faculty and alumni as a different kind of college, and it surely continued that mission on the Study Abroad trip I took. This is just another brilliant example! As a recent alum, this was a great way for me to stay involved with the college and even earn a few additional academic credits before transferring to another college later. It allowed me to feel more prepared, and I also felt like a mentor to my younger classmates.
The word “alumni” signifies one’s graduation and/or completion of schooling. However, if you found success in school, you never really leave. Your mind may wander and reminisce about friends you made, classes you wish you had taken and other opportunities you just never got around to taking advantage of. And while almost all colleges offer study abroad programs of some sort, everyone can agree there really is nothing like the Landmark College experience.
3) What did you gain from the trip?
To go on such an adventure, one must be willing and able to keep an open mind. From this trip, I gained perspective by looking at a different culture and understanding its view of my culture. I gained new friends, many of whom were new students or students whom I had simply never met. I gained experience; I left on my study abroad to the U.K. still unsure about what college I wanted to attend; unsure why the British say “sorry” versus “excuse me”; and unsure what countries the United Kingdom actually includes. I came back with answers to all those questions, and more.
Currently I’m in a course where we’re discussing and analyzing a lot of Aristotle’s work. (I promise, there is a connection here…) One of the topics of discussion is Aristotle’s notion that leisure is necessary. The class 
discussion came to the conclusion that it’s quite simple: everyone needs a break; everyone needs some sort of change in their lives; but more importantly, a person needs the opportunity to free his or her mind, to daydream, to explore his or her own thoughts and create new ones along the way. And what better opportunity than to go on a study abroad and expand and expose one’s mind to the new and different?
—Ben Lachman
Winter Class ‘12