“I’m studying health, society and policy at the U. I received the US-UK Fulbright Summer Institute opportunity—specifically, a program called ‘Modern Britain: Institutions, Power, and People’ combined with environment and sustainability. It’s a month-long study abroad in London, July 4 through Aug. 1. I’ve always dreamed of studying abroad, but I knew I couldn’t do it unless it was fully funded. I’ve never traveled outside of the U.S. and I am so excited to spend a month in London.

I was drawn to my major because I really want to help people. I started at Salt Lake Community College and graduated with a degree in sociology. When I came to the U, I wanted to hone in on public health and health policy — health accessibility for families, women’s health and health research.

My favorite class at the U was health economics, because it really broke down the logistics of health insurance: what works, what’s missing, and, most importantly, why. People look at health insurance and say, ‘This sucks,’ but they don’t know why it sucks. That’s the first step: learning what’s wrong with the system so you can actually help fix it. I am looking forward to taking a deeper look into institutions this summer and continuing to understand what is working and what can be improved. 

What I hope to build in London is resilience. I want to wake up every morning in a different country, build connections and network, even when it’s uncomfortable. I want to build that confidence.

This opportunity would have been completely off the table for me if it weren’t fully funded. I am so grateful I took the chance and applied.”

— Sabrina Espinoza, health, society and policy and bioinformatics,

College of Social and Behavioral Science and College of Science, from Salt Lake City, Utah