Studying abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that college students across the country can access. However, student-athletes’ opportunities are much more limited due to their athletic commitments and busy schedules at their respective institutions.
Marist women’s volleyball senior middle hitter Alyssa White and redshirt junior outside hitter Sally Tietjen bucked that trend last spring by studying abroad in Florence, Italy. They spent their semester embracing the world outside of being a student-athlete and experiencing life as a typical college student. Tietjen played a large part in persuading White to take the leap of faith and commit to the experience.
“Freshman year was when I first thought I wanted to go abroad, and originally I was scared to go, but [Sally] is why I wanted to,” said White. “I wouldn’t have done it if [Sally] hadn’t been talking about going to Florence and I thought well if she’s going to Florence, I’ll go to Florence too.”
The choice to go abroad and experience itself required a team effort. Not only did White and Tietjen travel across the world, but they learned a completely different lifestyle, a far cry from the fast-paced and constantly busy schedule of being a Marist student-athlete.
Their proximity to the city center in Florence and the city’s walkability made it easy for the two to embrace the slower lifestyle and shift their focus to enjoying the present moment.
“The lifestyle is just so different from what we’re used to being a student-athlete at Marist. [At Marist], you’re constantly going all the time, so having a bit of a break from the hard academics and practice helped me realize that there are so many different places that aren’t so fast-paced,” said Tietjen. “Going abroad gives you a greater sense of understanding that maybe your problems here at Marist College aren’t that big.”
This new lifestyle allowed for training to not be at the forefront of their minds and their problem-solving skills developed in different areas outside sports. Even their exercise regimen shifted while abroad; workouts in Florence consisted of stair workouts, core and runs along the Arno river.
The new challenges they faced were living with four new housemates, speaking a different language and learning how to navigate Florence and beyond. It helped establish newfound confidence that both women took back home with them.
“Being independent in something different from our identity of just being volleyball players was nice because we were able to branch out,” said White. “After this year, we’re not going to be volleyball players anymore so it was a good semester where we got to see what life would look like without the attention of our sport.”
The exposure to a new way of life and being able to think quickly in unfamiliar situations helped prepare White and Tietjen for their upcoming season with several new freshmen and a predominantly young roster.
As both of them are now Marist captains, they have begun to use their new skills to lead a young team and adjust to the new team culture. They have tried to balance having fun and working hard, all while soaking up their last season as Red Foxes. They have a better understanding of their international teammates with that shared experience.
“I don’t know if it’s because we’re seniors or we’re captains now, but there’s a much bigger sense of responsibility. I want to be able to find the balance of discipline and living in the moment,” said Tietjen.
The unique opportunity of studying abroad while being a student-athlete is difficult at the Division I level, but not in the eyes of Marist women’s volleyball head coach Sean Byron; he encourages it from the moment athletes step on campus.
“One of the things we do with every recruit that we bring in is have them meet with the study abroad office,” said Byron. “The idea is that we talk a lot about their bucket, which is empty when they come in as a freshman and the goal is that by the time you leave, hopefully, you can take your bucket and say, ‘Look at all this stuff that I did.’”
Marist study abroad is ranked the #1 study abroad program in the nation per Open Doors Report, offering 75 different programs and a wide variety of opportunities: First-year abroad, semester abroad, summer sessions and even short-term attachment programs with Marist Faculty members.
The program is open to any Marist student to apply, with the majority of applicants having their sights set on Marist’s branch campus in Florence. The experience is unique to any college student, but particularly to student-athletes as they can focus on school and experiences to take the pressure off of life as a student-athlete.
Byron supported the study abroad program for his athletes since joining Marist in 2019, seeing the benefit in his athletes experiencing life outside of their sport. The abroad experience adds a level of maturity to those who have the opportunity to go, and for Byron, the experience outweighed the training component for both of his athletes.
“One of the things we talked about with [Alyssa and Sally], was their initial concern about what to do for training. I told them to go enjoy Florence; You don’t know what you don’t have and what you’ll get out of that is maturity, in terms of how you’re going to handle situations when you come back,” said Byron.
Byron saw the duo’s growth since their freshman year, but believes they have truly thrived this year after their abroad experience. From White’s perspective, she believes that taking the leap to put her athletic career on pause was a more than worthwhile endeavor.
“A lot of student-athletes have been playing their sport from a young age, so it takes up a lot of time and you can’t imagine your life without it. I would definitely recommend the program to anyone, athlete or not because you will gain a bigger perspective on the fact that there is so much out there in the world,” said White.
Edited by Marley Pope and Luke Sassa
Graphic by Gabriella Cortes; Photos provided by Alyssa White
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