Name: Cole Kovarik
Major/Minor: Global Studies, Political Science, Spanish , Minor in German
Hometown: Kearney, NE
Year at UNL: Sophomore
Favorite book and why: Nada, by Carmen Laforet, because it’s the last book I read and that’s how it usually works with me!
Favorite movie and why: Moonrise Kingdom, because it tells an interesting and heartwarming story while it’s also very visually pleasing.
Why Global Studies? I chose Global Studies because I really value the interdisciplinary nature of the program and I think that learning about the world is so important. I also love the flexibility of the major so that it can be completely personalized to the student. Concerning the coursework, the seminar with Dr. Ibrahimpasic was extremely interesting and useful (every day as I read the news or interact with different people I think about concepts covered in that class), and I took an honors seminar called Mental Health Communication with Dr. Angela Palmer-Wackerly from the Department of Communication Studies and that has been one of my favorite classes to date. Speaking to new Global Studies majors, I would certainly suggest getting organized early. Define your goals and chat with all of the advisors available to you! And attend Global Studies events! They are always interesting and helpful (and there’s usually free food). I would also stress the importance of taking advantage of experiential opportunities. Whether it’s studying abroad, finding an internship, volunteering, or even getting involved in research, UNL has loads of opportunities that can supplement your academic coursework—you just have to put some work to find them!
Study Abroad Experience: I am spending my sophomore year in Granada, Spain, where I take Spanish classes for my Spanish major at the University of Granada’s Center of Modern Languages, and also some courses in the Political Science Department. In the program there are a lot of different classes to choose from other than Spanish grammar or writing. I took a translation course, several literature courses, linguistics, and oral production. For Political Science I will be taking classes like International Political Economy and Techniques of Social-Political Data Production (all in Spanish with Spanish students). Being in Spain is certainly rewarding and there are always opportunities to travel! From Granada, you can take a 30-minute bus to the mountains to hike or ski, or a 45-minute bus to the beach to swim and sunbathe. The south of Spain is a beautiful region and there are endless weekend destinations! I’ve taken advantage of cheap flights and visited Budapest, Prague, Vienna, Milan and Florence, as well as a lot of different cities in Spain. Currently, since I have such a long winter break, I am doing a work-exchange at a hostel in Tallinn, Estonia for a month, and so far it’s been a great experience!
Post-Graduation Plans: After I graduate, I want to pursue a masters degree in International Relations, in Spain or Germany if it works out, but I have a while before I get that far!