Traveling Abroad: A Minority Student's Experience

As the daughter of Mexican parents, I was raised with family-centered values which conflict with the values of independence, freedom and individuality stressed in the United States. Being a minority has become part of my identity, thus influencing how I make decisions about finances and traveling. Minorities are faced with many more concern, like familial concerns and financial obligations which hinder their desire to attempt to travel (Salisbury, Paulsen, & Ernest, 2011). My main concerns were convincing my parents that traveling to Nicaragua and studying abroad in Greece and Italy would be beneficial to my college experience, along with financially being able to go through with each experience. The main purpose of my thesis is to share what it is like to be a minority faced with cultural and financial obstacles that make it difficult to travel and how the experience is shaped due to these obstacles.