Standing in a field of mud at least a foot deep, and planting rice clump after rice clump is not something the average ISU student would find themselves doing in the 20 days before the start of the fall semester.

That is exactly what Scott Henry, junior in agricultural business, was doing.

“I never thought I would be calf-deep in mud and sweating like a pig and loving it,” Henry said.

Transplanting rice was just one of the many activities Henry experienced while taking part in the Exploring Agriculture in Taiwan program.

Offered through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Study Abroad office, EAT is a fully-paid program sponsored by the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at National Chung Hsing University and Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Henry said the two goals of the program are to show college-level agriculture students the agriculture system in Taiwan and bring students together to talk about higher education in their agriculture schools.

Henry said 23 students from 18 universities in the United States, along with 15 students from Taiwan, participated in the 17-day program.

During those 17 days, the students did everything from transplanting rice and learning about organic farming, to visiting a Taiwan brewery and an experimental forest.

Henry said he gained a better understanding of different cultures through the various tours and presentations he attended.

One requirement of the program is each student must give a presentation regarding their university’s agricultural education and study abroad programs.

Henry’s presentation focused not only on the required topics, but also on his personal experiences in what Iowa State has to offer students.

During the course of his presentation, Henry said the students were amazed at all that Iowa State has to offer, from the spacious campus to the support of faculty members.

“It was cool to see the other students’ eyes get bigger and jaws drop,” Henry said.

Listening to the other students’ presentations and seeing how Iowa State compared to other agricultural colleges made Henry realize how proud he is to be a Cyclone.

“It makes my education even more valuable,” Henry said.

The trip to Taiwan was not the first time Henry’s feet have left American soil. In fact, it was the 12th time.

Through church mission trips and short excursions offered through ISU programs, Henry has been to 12 different countries: Panama, Thailand, Argentina, Uruguay, China, Vietnam, Spain, Greece, Italy, Austria, Germany and Taiwan. He has traveled to the last six countries in this year alone.

“The international experience is invaluable,” Henry said. “It may strain your pocketbook while you’re in college, but it’s worth it.”

Henry’s international experience is part of what led the CALS Study Abroad office to nominate him for the EAT program.

“We believe that he has a passion for international education and will be a great ambassador of our college as well as Iowa State,” said Difei Shen, global agriculture programs coordinator.

Henry encourages other students to consider studying internationally. He said a common misconception among students is that study abroad trips are expensive. What students do not realize is that there is financial assistance available for those who need it. They just need to take the time to fill it out.

“You can find ways to do it, you just have to take the time to do it,” Henry said.