Studying Abroad in Copenhagen - Taylor Fox

Studying Abroad in Copenhagen - Taylor Fox

“Honestly though, does anybody really get anything out of studying abroad besides realizing how fun it is to spend your parents' money?”

This is the facebook status us of a guy who used to sit next to me in my high school Chinese class. He was quite smart and likeable, and he went to a respected school. So what happened? Is he being facetious? Am I really that lucky to be having an incredible experience both personally and professionally?

I'm studying Prostitution and the Sex Trade at the Danish Institute of Study Abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark. My Tulane scholarship transfers over, but in the interest of full disclosure, I'll admit to being in a privileged position financially. I worked over winter break, and got a study abroad scholarship, but my parents are footing the rest of the bill. For this I am so, so grateful. Truthfully, it is fun spending my parents' money, but this is not a semester off of nonstop partying.

I'm taking classes I'd never be able to take in an American classroom on a topic that I hope to one day turn into a career. I am truly getting a global perspective on the sex industry. I am beginning to understand the impact of legislation on these marginalized communities on a micro scale. Right now, I am on a class study tour to Amsterdam. Within the last five days, I have been gotten to attend lectures to hear the perspectives of a female sex worker, a male sex worker, a customer., a government employee, and a social worker at an NGO. I have walked through the Red Light District. I have sat in one of the famous windows (by attending a very cool museum) and been stared at. I have spoken to a police officer about his thoughts on legalization.

In the last three months, I have studied the Danish model (legal to sell and buy, illegal to be involved as a third party), and the Swedish model (legal to sell, illegal to buy). I have talked to police officers in Denmark and border control officers in Sweden. I have talked to a happy sex worker whose biggest complaint was regarding taxes. I have listened to the story of a woman who felt forced into prostitution by financial circumstances and had an unhappy client try to set her on fire. My opinion on the best way to legislate this keeps changing. I have learned so much. I am surrounded by classmates who feel just as much passion for this subject as I do.

My other classes are amazing too. In my Gender and Sexuality class, we just discussed children's books and how to teach children about themselves and their peers. In my Pornography class, we analyze the different discourses seen in porn and how they intersect with gender and the public sphere. In my Human Trafficking class, we've learned about the international legal efforts to eradicate this issue and how they don't necessarily dovetail with human rights in the ways that you'd hope. In my Danish class, we've learned how to order a sandwich, but also about the mentality of the Danes and the different way that they define success.

So, yes, I've been to Finland, and Sweden, and Germany, and Iceland, and the Netherlands, and I plan to go to Italy. Yes, I had a really good time on my twenty-first birthday here. And yes, Danish men are hands down the most good-looking men on the planet. But I recognize that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I know I'll be leaving with a unique perspective that will give me a competitive edge in the job market. If all that you get out of studying abroad is a story about a hangover, you're doing it wrong.

Choosing to study abroad has been one of the best decisions I've ever made.