OXFORD, Miss. – Being the youngest of three sisters, Emily Scheuer of Tupelo found it difficult to be the first in her family to do anything. That is, until now.
A junior business marketing major at the University of Mississippi, Scheuer spent the fall semester studying abroad in London.
“I’ve been fortunate to have a helping family – especially my mom, who goes out of her way to help me with everything,” Scheuer said. “This is the first thing that I have ever done that is truly myself – a truly unique personal experience.”
Scheduled to return home Dec. 12, Scheuer will be sharing many interesting stories with friends and family during the holidays.
Early in the semester, she reported back to the Oxford campus that “London is absolutely wonderful – it’s amazing here,” she said. “There is never a dull minute.”
With a double minor in international studies and French, and other interests that range from art and even pastry school, Scheuer participated in the CAPA London Program, a partner institution of the UM Study Abroad Office.
She was enrolled in several courses, including an art history class that included regular visits to a museum, an economics class that taught evaluating world trade, a UK culture class with weekly field trips throughout London, and a European government and politics class.
“It’s also been interesting to learn about myself and having people ask me tough questions about what I do and why I do it. Being at home, everyone just takes it for what it is and that’s it.”
Her experiences also included internships, one in the marketing department of Olsen UK Ltd, a women’s clothing line based in Germany with a sister store in the UK, and another with R&H DeKeyser fashion agency. She said she especially enjoyed the latter.
“I worked specifically in the evening gown section that sells Jovani – worn by Beyonce, Taylor Swift and Fergie, Duchess of York, to name a few,” she said. “One day, I helped a stylist pick out gowns for Katherine Jenkins, a famous opera singer, and another time for Leona Lewis, an English pop and R&B singer-songwriter.”
In her first internship, she said she “learned a lot about the different dynamics of a work office, learning my role and coordinating it with everyone else.
“Being part of a team with people that I was not already familiar with allowed me to gain self-confidence in my work and abilities. I also hope it will help me when it comes time to prepare for the real world and obtaining a job.”
While undecided about her future career, she’s interested in the international arena and is considering getting either an MBA or a master’s in international studies.
Aside from her own learning experience while studying abroad, Scheuer says she thinks she may have done a bit of teaching herself.
“I love the fact that I helped to break misunderstood traditions about Americans, Southerners and Mississippi to British and other Americans in my program,” she said. “I had roommates from the University of Minnesota, University of Pittsburgh and Rider College in New Jersey.
“I have to say the thing that amazed people the most about my speaking was the way I say ‘y’all.’ I even had to explain to one of my Polish co-workers what the word means.”
Scheuer lived in Clerkenwell, an area of central London in the London Borough of Islington. While there, she traveled to Paris and visited her father’s family in Denmark, about a one-hour plane ride from London. She also enjoyed visits from some of her friends who were also studying abroad, as well as from her dad and sisters and a friend from home.
“I also did a lot of exploring around London – the Thames River Festival and London Eye (the largest Ferris wheel in Europe) and almost every museum you could imagine,” she said.
Scheuer is a 2007 graduate of Tupelo High School. Her parents are Jorgen and Dorothy Scheuer.
For more information about UM Study Abroad, visit http://www.outreach.olemiss.edu/study?abroad/ .