Trevor Loudin of Salisbury, a rising senior at Catawba College, will be spending two months in France this summer thanks to his participation in the Paris Internship Program offered through Boston University.
After an extensive application process, Loudin was accepted into this highly selective and rigorous program in March and even received a scholarship to help underwrite the program costs. He will depart for Paris on May 19. Loudin hopes that this two-month, in-country experience will further enhance his French language skills and give him a taste of what life after college will be like in an international business environment.
Loudin is majoring in business administration with a concentration in international business at Catawba and minoring in French language and culture. He has already made two trips to France with his fellow students and faculty at Catawba, but wanted a more in-depth experience that his participation in the Paris Internship Program will provide. After his graduation from Catawba next year, Loudin plans to go onto graduate school to earn an MBA before pursuing a career with an international business or organization.
Loudin traveled to France in 2013 with Catawba classmates and professor, Dr. Marie-Odile Langhorne, in a trip linked to a French Culture Class titled "C'est la Vie!" This 2013 trip included visits to Paris, Versailles, Normandie, Brittany and the Renaissance Castles of the Loire Valley. In 2014, he traveled with another group of Catawba students and Dr. Langhorne in another trip linked to a class that focused on French institutions and specific regions of France, including Paris, Versailles, as well as the south of France with stops in Avignon, Nimes and Aix en Provence.
When he arrives in France in mid-May of this year, Loudin will participate in multiple interviews with the European Union Studies Association (EUSA) to determine the best internship to fit his studies and career interests. His internship, which will require his participation for 35-40 hours each week, and the courses he will take through Boston University during the course of the program will be in French.
Loudin's professor at Catawba, Dr. Langhorne, was complimentary of both her student and the program he has been accepted into. "Boston University's Paris Internship Program is highly selected and considered one of the top summer abroad programs. It is a great honor for me, as his professor, to see that Trevor, through his hard work, motivation and desire to reach fluency in French, was among the successful applicants."
Loudin's experience in France will conclude July 19.
