During the fall 2024 semester, BYU Marriott School of Business students Ellie and Trevor Lowry rode the bus home from class every weekday—not from the Tanner Building, but from Pforzheim University in Germany.
Natives of Arizona, Ellie and Trevor married in May 2023 and enrolled in separate BYU Marriott programs—Ellie in marketing and Trevor in finance. Finding a study abroad program that worked for both majors seemed unlikely until they learned about the Whitmore Global Business Center’s (GBC) student exchange program, in which students enroll in business classes abroad and live independently, immersing themselves in campus life with local and international students.
Ellie and Trevor had wanted to have an international experience during college, and Germany’s centrality in Europe made studying there an enticing option. On top of location, the exchange program allowed Ellie and Trevor to choose their own classes, which kept them on track for graduation. “It was special to not only have an international experience together but also to further our education together as well,” Trevor says.
But while the program’s autonomy appealed to the couple, Trevor says that it also brought challenges. To study in Germany, Ellie and Trevor needed to obtain visas, find housing, and register for classes—and neither of them spoke German. “It was intimidating to pack up and move to a country across the world, far removed from any family or friends, just me and my wife,” he says.
Despite their nervousness, the Lowrys moved forward, and one by one their concerns were resolved. They secured visas, found a place to live, and enrolled in classes. They also discovered that most people they met in Germany also spoke English, and when language barriers came up, translator apps could bridge the gap. Ellie remembers how a group of German classmates even gave her pointers, such as where to get the cheapest groceries. “They took me under their wing,” she says. “I asked them so many questions, and they helped me live like a local.”
Ellie and Trevor got more than just shopping recommendations out of their interactions abroad. While trying new foods, like döner, they learned about their international friends’ backgrounds. They also shared parts of their own culture as they spoke with people who had never met a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “It was awesome to learn from people of other religious backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures,” Ellie says. “And I think they learned from us too.”
Although there were differences in backgrounds, Ellie says that she found unity with her classmates through business. “Cultures may be different, people may be different, but at the end of the day, business is the same,” Ellie says. “It was interesting to see that what I learned at BYU Marriott applied to what I learned in Germany.”
Trevor says that the experience in Germany helped him develop more empathy. “I realized that not everyone is like me, and no one is in the same position of life that I am,” he says. “I learned a lot of interesting things that I wouldn’t know without traveling outside of where I’m from.”
But Trevor didn’t just learn about other people—he also learned more about himself. “I realized that I can do hard things,” he says. “Ellie and I knew there would be unknowns and maybe things would go wrong, but we made a plan and executed it. If we had been scared off by all the things that could have gone wrong, we never would have had such an incredible, life-changing experience.”