CIEE Latin America Fellow Spotlight: Dylan Boiling
Meet the CIEE Leading Change in Latin America Student Fellows!
Follow along as CIEE sends 100 student leaders on a fully-funded semester abroad through the CIEE Leading Change in Latin America Fellowship. In this series, we spotlight Fellows as they immerse themselves in Latin American culture, grow as leaders, and prepare to make an impact worldwide.
Name: Dylan Boiling
School: Tulane University
Major: Humanities
LATAM Location: Mérida, Mexico
Q1: What excites you most about studying abroad in Latin America?
At my core, I am just excited to go to a place and learn about things I have no knowledge of.

See more: Dylan shares why you should study abroad in Latin America
Q2: What do you hope to learn (academically, culturally, and/or personally) during your semester abroad?
I hope that this experience will allow me to build personal connections, mostly with other artists, with the hope of collaborations in the future.
Q3: What Latin American cultural tradition are you most excited to immerse yourself in?
I am most excited for the culture of celebrating death and what comes after in Mexico. Where I am from, we celebrate the life someone lived, but from my understanding, Mexicans go further and actually celebrate death and the beauty of it. I am very excited to see how it differs from what I have seen.
Q4: What local food(s) are you most excited to try?
There is no one food I am most excited to try, especially since I do not know much about Mexico beyond the incredibly mainstream. I am excited to try as many foods as I can.

See more: Dylan visits the Chichen Itza
Q5: How does your personal background or identity shape your interest in Latin America?
As someone from the America South, specifically New Orleans, I have always been interesting in how similar my life seems to be compared to others living in the Gulf Coast and the Caribbean. I have found I often have more in common with people living in Havana or Mérida than with people living in New York City.
Become a Latin America Student Fellow
Your turn to make an impact in Latin America starts here – apply for the CIEE Leading Change in Latin America Student Fellowship today!