My Last Blog Before Returning to Ireland!

by Chris L., Panther Blogger


Hey, everyone!  What's the craic?

So, this is my last blog post as I will be returning home on Friday. I am so excited to go home to see all my friends and family.

My year at Ferrum College went so quickly, it's a shame I can't stay for another year. This semester particularly went extremely fast mainly due to all the snowy days we had. I am enjoying the weather we are currently getting, however, I am looking forward to the good old Irish rain when I get home.

All the international students got bored one day, so we decided to have a water balloon fight. This was very fun as it was a hot day and the water cooled us down.

Recently, two international students and I wrote a report about how to improve the international student experience when they are studying at Ferrum. We wrote this report so that faculty members could become aware of ways to improve the student experience for the next international students. The main area for improvement we found from our report was to have international students to live with American students so that we get more opportunities to hang out with Americans and form stronger friendships with them. So, next semester, it has been suggested that international students will live with Americans, and I think this will make the whole experience a lot better!

This past Saturday, I was very grateful that Dr. Basu offered to take me and three other international students out for the day. He took us on a drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway so we could see the view and then go to Roanoke to eat some Indian food. It was great to get off campus for awhile and I appreciate all that Dr. Basu has done during the past year for us and I would just like to say thanks to him!

Thanks to everyone for making my year at Ferrum College a pleasant one. Who knows, maybe in the future, I will be able to come back to visit.

Snowboarding and St. Patrick's Day

by Chris L., Panther Blogger

Hullo everyone!  I've been very busy lately doing lots of assignments.  However, I got the chance to go snowboarding with Ferrum Outdoors Club, and it was so good!  I've skied before in Italy but never snowboarded.  I got a lesson but still found it very difficult.  I could only seem to turn left and not turn right!  My body was in agony afterward because I fell so many times!  It was an extremely good value, plus in Ireland, we don't have any ski slopes, so it was nice to do something I wouldn't get the chance to do at home.

Monday the 17th of March was Saint Patrick's Day.  I was so happy when I woke up and read the email that classes were cancelled because in Ireland, it is a national holiday, so everyone gets the day off.  People on campus may have seen me walking about with my leprechaun hat as I wanted to remind myself of home and to signify that I am proud of my country.

It is hard to believe that I have only 6 weeks left of my year abroad in the USA - time went by so fast.  In some ways, I will be glad to go home to see my family and friends!  However, I will miss Ferrum greatly, and the friends I have made here will be lifelong friends. The whole experience of a different educational system has been an eye opener and a great experience.  If I had to choose between studying in Ireland or the USA, I would pick the USA because you guys seem to have an education system with more gradual assessments and many more chances to improve your work and grades than I would have at my home university.

My Last Semester!

by Chris L., Panther Blogger

Hey everyone!

I am back at Ferrum for my last semester!  I went home to Ireland during the Christmas break as I was feeling pretty homesick.  It was great to be home and see all my family and friends!  While I was home, I managed to get some time and go to watch my favourite rugby team play!  Ulster is one of the most successful rugby teams in Europe and are from my province in Ireland.

I was excited to come back to Ferrum and continue on this Study Abroad experience, however, I am sad as I only have around 12 weeks left in the USA before my VISA expires.  I hope to make this semester as enjoyable as possible.  This semester, I have continued along the business line of classes as they are compulsory for me. I am taking Business Communication, Microeconomics, Personal Finance, Advance Computer Applications, and my elective is Ecotourism.  I hope these classes are as enjoyable as the ones I took last semester!

Thanksgiving Break in America

by Chris L., Panther Blogger


Hey, Everyone!

It's been awhile since my last blog post!  My first semester at Ferrum is almost over and I can hardly believe it.  It has passed by so quickly!  Two more weeks and I will be back in Northern Ireland.  I must say I am looking forward to going home to my family and having some good Irish food!

Over the past 3 months I have been at Ferrum, my mother has been sending me little parcels with goodies from home to keep my spirits up!

November has been a very busy month with lots of assignments due in and this has kept me occupied. The weather is a lot more enjoyable for me personally mainly because it's not as hot anymore and I am used to the cold temperatures because it is similar to the weather back home!


I wanted to do some traveling while I stayed in America, so for Thanksgiving week, I went to Washington and New York. This was an unbelievable experience and it did not disappoint!  We did get lost a couple of times, but it was all part of the fun!  It's hard to say what my favourite moment was, but what I will never forget is:

1. Standing in Times Square on Black Friday and realising what a crazy place I was in and that the city literally does not sleep.
2. Seeing the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. I had heard all about it at home and seen it on TV, but it was brilliant to see it in person.
3. The view from the Empire State building at day and night.

Sailing with Ferrum Outdoors!

by Chris L., Panther Blogger

Hey everyone!

On the 28th of September, I went sailing with Ferrum Outdoors!

It was a brilliant day and was a real hands-on experience as we had to sail the boat ourselves.  We got to try out two different boats, which was interesting as both boats handled differently.  You don't need to have any experience to do this - I hadn't a clue what I was doing and had never done anything like it before! 

One thing I could not understand was why only a couple of us went sailing as it only cost us each $10, and that included lunch!  Back in Ireland, to do something like that would have cost me a lot more than $10 -- more in the $60-80 range.  I would highly recommend you to go on the next sailing day that Ferrum Outdoors has planned.  It's a chance to try something new!

Settling In

by Chris L., Panther Blogger

I have been at Ferrum College now for just over 2 weeks. The first thing that has taken me a while to adjust to is the heat. Back home in Northern Ireland, it rains almost every day and we very rarely get a full day of sun shine. Our summer consists of day after day of rain, and we rarely have temperatures over 20 degrees Celsius. I am looking forward to the winter as I am not used to this heat!

Another issue I have had to adjust to is the timetable. Back home at my university during my first two years, I was only in college two/three day a week.  Over here, I am in class every day, although it is only for a couple of hours, and then the rest of the day I can spend doing things I like. I have completed as many assignments in the past two weeks here as I have in 1 year at university at home. We do not have to complete that many assignments as they only count as a small percentage of my overall mark for the year. Exams are more important at home.

On Friday the 7th of September, I attended the free bowling night in Rocky Mount with the other international students. Although I am not very good at bowling, it was still good "craic" (craic in Northern Ireland means "fun").  I often say "what's the craic" to people and get weird looks, but it actually means "How are you".

Last weekend, I watched my first American football game and I did not understand it one bit. I couldn't believe how long the matches take -- it took around 1 hour and 30 minutes to get to half time!  Hopefully, by the end of the year, I will understand it a bit better though. Back home, I play rugby, so it was good to actually see an American football game in person to see how it differs.

Hello from Panther Blogger Chris!

by Chris L., Panther Blogger


Hello, everyone!

My name is Chris and I am from Northern Ireland.  I live in the countryside near a village called Cullybackey, and I have a strong Northern Irish accent.  Back home, I have one sister and my mum and dad.  I love rugby and motorbikes -- Northern Ireland hosts the fastest road race in the world with speeds of 200 mph+ and an average speed of 133.977 mph per lap around a road track, which is crazy to watch!

Map showing where I live in Northern Ireland

County Antrim area where I live

As I am on a 4-year degree course back in Northern Ireland, I will study at Ferrum College for one year and then I will go back to Ireland to finish my degree. My major is business.  I picked Ferrum College mainly because it is set in the countryside, which suits me well since I live in a rural area.  As well as this when I was looking into Ferrum, I saw I could do an agriculture course in my second semester, which I am very interested in doing because my granda is a farmer.

As an international student, Ferrum College has made me feel very welcome. Everyone has been extremely friendly to me so far, which has helped me a lot because I am extremely far away from home!  I hope to take part in some of the Ferrum Outdoors activities which all seem like great fun!  I am only going to be here for one year, but hopefully, it will be a year I will never forget!