A World of Learning

A transfer student from Lansing, Ian McDonald has studied abroad three times. Photography by Doug Coombe

It was 4 a.m. on a hot summer night in Kyoto. Ian McDonald was belting his karaoke-loving heart out with strangers he had befriended hours earlier while out and about in the city.

His journey to that outing—and three study abroad programs at U-M—was not a straightforward one.

McDonald grew up in Lansing, a linguistically diverse community where he was surrounded by friends and family who came from a variety of cultural backgrounds. Through his personal friendships as well as YouTube videos watched in high school, he developed a strong interest in language study. Due to a number of absences in high school, he did not graduate with his class. Instead, he finished his high school requirements with classes at Lansing Community College, and continued his education there for two more years. 

In his last year at LCC, McDonald caught sight of a transfer coordinator from U-M’s College of Literature, Science, and the Arts tabling outside a classroom. He struck up a conversation and found out that LSA offered linguistics as a major. “I already had a budding interest,” he says, “so I thought, ‘Oh yes, this is perfect.’”

McDonald had several years of college courses under his belt by the time he arrived in Ann Arbor in 2023, so he was predominantly interested in finding opportunities for novel experiences. One of the first friends he made on campus worked at the Center for Global and Intercultural Study (CGIS) and sang its praises. Though McDonald never actively thought about studying abroad, his friend group urged him to do so, pointing out that his Go Blue Guarantee funding also covered tuition for CGIS programs. He was sold: That semester, he and his friends applied to CGIS’s public health program in Cape Town, South Africa. 

It turned out that 10 weeks in Cape Town was just the beginning of McDonald’s study abroad journey. While learning about community health care and public health organizations, he also studied Zulu, one of the many languages spoken in South Africa. Exploring a new country, immersed in a different culture, covered by his financial aid: “Why would I not do this?” he reasoned. 

By the time McDonald returned to Ann Arbor, he knew he’d caught the bug. He studied Swedish as his linguistic specialty; one of his family friends was Swedish and casually taught him “sailor speech” when he was a child, and he decided that he wanted to formalize his education at LSA. When his professor Johanna Eriksson announced a trip to Stockholm over spring break, he applied immediately. He and his classmates spent 10 days beefing up their language skills and exploring the city. 

Now a senior, McDonald plans on applying to teach English in South Korea postgraduation—a goal he wouldn’t have pursued if it weren’t for his experience in Japan. 

One day, McDonald and a friend walked into a thrift store, where they began chatting with an employee. Though English is the lingua franca in Scandinavia, McDonald made the effort to speak Swedish with locals as often as he could. The thrift store employee was flabbergasted. “He said, ‘How do you know some of the words that you’re saying?’” McDonald remembers. Usually, if a foreigner came into the store speaking Swedish, it would be excessively formal: “very DuoLingo,” McDonald says. 

His early education in Swedish sailor speech had paid off—it turned out that the employee knew where Michigan was and expressed his passion for Detroit’s Motown. Combining his formalized education with his cross-cultural upbringing, McDonald was able to ask for music recommendations as well as make a new friend.

“The second I got back from that program, I applied to go to another study abroad program in Japan,” McDonald says. He spent 13 weeks in Kyoto, where he learned two semesters’ worth of Japanese. His instructor recommended popular hangout spots for young people in the area, so McDonald and his friends started to frequent a local cafe. 

One evening, they noticed a few of the cafe workers hanging around a nearby convenience store. McDonald knew from his classes that it is common for Japanese coworkers to spend time with each other after work, perhaps over drinks or a meal. “One thing led to another, and we ended up going to karaoke,” he says.

McDonald remembers getting back to his apartment so late that he could watch the sun rise. “If I was back at home, I would probably just be sitting in my room,” he says. “But here I am, just getting back from karaoke with a bunch of Japanese friends I met three seconds ago.” 

Now a senior, McDonald plans on applying to teach English in South Korea postgraduation—a goal he wouldn’t have pursued if it weren’t for his experience in Japan. 

“I know it’s stereotypical,” he says, “but that program literally changed my life.” 

This story is part of a series focusing on LSA’s support for transfer students, initially published in recognition of national Transfer Student Week in October 2025. Learn more about transferring to LSA.