A summer with Notre Dame Global: From California Polytechnic State University to Beijing, China
When students choose a Notre Dame study abroad program, they’re looking for something more than a trip abroad. They’re seeking to push themselves outside their comfort zone, take their studies to a new level, and expand their view of the world as they know it.
That’s what drew Leorah Roeber to the ND-Peking University Joint Beijing Summer: Philosophy of Culture, Art & Science. As a student studying philosophy at California Polytechnic State University, Leorah had already spent a semester studying abroad in Spain through her school, but she didn’t want to stop there. She saw summer as the perfect in-between time to take advantage of programs abroad, and she was particularly interested in spending time in Asia, due to her Thai heritage.
After searching online, Notre Dame was one of the few universities she came across that was welcoming to outside students—and offered a program that was a seamless fit for her major, philosophy. “The Beijing Summer program was perfect because it’s philosophy and that’s basically unheard of,” she says. “To find a study abroad program that was actually relevant to my major was so exciting.” Leorah also already had a level of trust and familiarity with the University because, although she now goes to school across the country, she attended high school in South Bend.
The three-week summer faculty-led program is co-taught by a Notre Dame professor in philosophy, Nicholas Teh, Peking University (PKU) faculty, and Professor Yafeng Shan from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, in a joint friendship-building classroom for both Notre Dame students and PKU students. The course content focuses on philosophy of physics and philosophy of biology, as well as an exploration of art and culture in Beijing. During the course this summer, students delved deeper into Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Chinese politics and culture in the classroom, complemented by study tours to various historic sites that directly connected classroom discussions with Beijing’s rich cultural landmarks. Students are also immersed in the culinary and cultural life of Beijing and Greater China through excursions to numerous landmarks like the Great Wall, the Summer Palace, and the Forbidden City.
Leorah also got to intern with the Berggruen Institute, located on PKU’s campus, while in Beijing. She researched how emerging technologies—especially artificial intelligence and synthetic biology—connect to philosophical questions about human identity and ethics. Her main focus was on reframing AI through a more positive, human-centered lens. “What I enjoyed most was the independence I had to shape my research around my own interests. I could take the project in directions that genuinely intrigued me,” she shares. “It was also exciting to experience such a professional environment—it felt like a glimpse into the kind of interdisciplinary research I might pursue as a career."
While Leorah’s done a fair bit of traveling (29 countries and counting!), she admits that China challenged her the most in terms of navigating everyday life. But for her, that only added to the excitement of the journey. It also helped to have the support of the Notre Dame Beijing staff. Notre Dame Beijing is part of the University of Notre Dame’s global network and has helped the University expand its partnerships, research, and program offerings for students since its establishment in 2012. Leorah notes how ND Beijing Program Coordinator Aimee Xinyu Cheng went “above and beyond” to help the group get settled: “There were so many completely new experiences, and Aimee was so patient with helping us figure all of that out.” And yet, students had the freedom to grow and flex their independence as well.
“I think the Notre Dame program was a perfect balance,” Leorah shares. “Yes, we did have support, but we also had to be adults and do our research and fail a couple of times to figure things out. Sometimes things did go wrong, but then when they went right, it was really exciting and fun.”
She shares how the close-knit group of students who participated in the program was one of the reasons she enjoyed the challenges. “Figuring out all these tricky things with new people automatically helps you get close really quickly because when you’re trying to learn how to take the subway in Beijing, it turns into a fun little adventure that you share,” she says.
Not only did she grow close with her Notre Dame cohort, but she also became friends with students from PKU, putting to rest a concern she had going into the program. “I think the hardest part is deciding to do it beforehand,” Leorah says, admitting that she worried about everyone already being friends or feeling excluded before she applied. But her time in the program made her realize a simple truth: “We're all just 19-year-olds, we have so much to relate on beyond what school we go to. I think it's really important to push your comfort zone in that sense.”
Ready to push yourself? Explore the study abroad opportunities that Notre Dame offers on the study abroad website.
Originally published by at studyabroad.nd.edu on October 15, 2025.