Normandy Scholar Program on WWII

Testimonials from the Class of 2025

I joined the Normandy Scholar Program knowing that I would learn about World War II.  And I finished the program with a far more nuanced view than I could have imagined and endless memories.  NSP has been life changing, forcing me to face my own biases in history, evaluate the complexities of everyday life at the time, and realize the consequences of WWII in the present.  Beyond academics, NSP and its professors encourage and exemplify empathy, curiosity, and deeper thinking.  The NSP environment becomes your safe space of open discussion and debate.  Through this, you also gain a special group of lifelong friends who share an interest and embrace hard conversations.  In my time at UT, I can confidently say that Normandy will remain one of the most joyous, memorable, and worthwhile experiences. 
— Isabel Yang, Chemistry, Government

One quote from our US class has stayed with me since the very beginning: "Have the courage to use your own understanding," is therefore the motto of the enlightenment. — Immanuel Kant, What is Enlightenment?  Studying WWII through the lens of five different countries showed just how fluid definitions, ideologies, and post-war memories can be.  Even after a semester of study and a month of travel across different museums and memorials, the questions persist: How did the Nazi regime escalate from revoking citizenship to deportation and systematic mass murder, especially given their initial success in managing Poland?  What drives individuals and institutions to collaborate with, or resist, oppressive systems?  How should we view the Soviet Union’s effort in WWII?  How do societies reconstruct memory after such devastation?  And what unexpected social change emerged from the war's disruptions to gender, class, and racial hierarchies?  Instead of taking refuge in clear-cut answers, we have “the courage to use your own understanding”: The courage to confront the 20th century: its horrors, its moral ambiguities, its unresolved echoes.  The courage to hold competing narratives side by side and realize that reality is always more tangled than it first appears.  The courage to test ideas in discussions with professors and peers, long after class ends.  In short, NSP teaches you how to think.
— Melanie Hsieh, Physics

I am confident that my peers would speak for the fierce Kirov debate, the glorious week of three essays and sleep deprivation, the trauma bonding over Polish films, and the lovely summer sky of Bayeux.  The bolder ones might even write about the pub crawls.  However, as of the year 2025, I feel inclined to speak with urgency. WWII history never felt as relevant as today, a feeling shared and acknowledged by most of my peers and faculty.  It was refreshing, enriching, and, frankly, exhausting to learn about a period of history that entails so much pain and suffering as relevant domestic and international headlines flooded into the classroom discussions daily. Had you chosen to embrace the topics with your whole heart, mind and soul, you could be moved to tears by accounts and depictions of atrocities, pushed to uncomfortable corners by ethical dilemmas, challenged by the constant flux of intellectual inputs and outputs, until the only feelings left were the dull fingertips and humming of the AC as you stare at a finished rough draft of your paper with sleepy eyes.  And it will all be worth it.   Everyone likes to talk about the death of liberalism nowadays. The Normandy Scholar Program brings you back in time to the last time that economies flopped, liberalism failed, and republics fell—the Second World War.  Yes, NSP is about WWII, but it is also so much more than the military aspect or the narrow common wisdom version of the holocaust.  We learned of the erosions and the collapses of republics throughout Europe from within and outside.  We learned of the alternative paths taken by fascism and communism along with their heavy price tags and, sometimes, benefits.  We learned of the personal choice between collaboration and resistance under oppression, whether in partitioned Poland or the segregated US homeland.  The program encompassed an almost unthinkable scope from the Dreyfus affair in 1894 to the rise of Osama bin Laden, a scope that it covered with varied depth and as many details as one semester allows.  The only major shortcoming of NSP is its tendency to tell a Eurocentric tale.  In a way, the flaw is hinted at in the name "Normandy."  It has made much progress in including Eastern European perspectives from Poland and Russia already, but do not expect to learn much about Japanese atrocities in Asia, the North African campaign, or even the Balkans.  Nevertheless, many lessons from WWII are universal, and it is easy to extend your understanding elsewhere—you just must seek the materials on your own.  Congratulations, future Normandy Scholars.  There is no time like the present to learn about WWII history.  You are in for an exciting semester.
— Forest Lu, Computer Science

From sleep-deprived debates about who killed Kirov to defending the engineering merits of your museum exhibit proposal to cooking a croque monsieur feast for your professors in a French millhouse, the Normandy Scholar Program will usher you through the gamut of human experiences. Your classes will teach you everything you could want to know about World War II.  Military strategy, motivating ideologies, personal narratives, diplomacy, and intrigue are just the tip of the iceberg.  Beyond the war itself, the Normandy Scholar Program will teach you how this global event shaped our modern age, with shifting international powers, border changes, population movements, new inventions like the Americano and nuclear energy, and even changes in fashion, music, and culture from James Bond to the Beatles.  Whatever your field, the Normandy Scholar Program is for you because WWII undeniably influenced your life and your interests. Your professors will challenge you to engage with the material directly, interpret moral ambiguity, and understand the many perspectives and competing desires behind each event.  While you will have to write many an essay, the effort not only cements your confidence in your knowledge but also prepares you to dissect and argue your opinion in a defensible, comprehensive manner.  Beyond learning about WWII, the purpose of the Normandy Scholar Program is to give you the tools to research and comprehend any subject on your own so that you may be a competent, articulate leader in any field.  The cherry on top is that you get to take a fabulous month-long trip with twenty of your closest friends and world-class historians who can answer any question the many historical sites and museums inspire.  Hard to beat a program that fills your resume, social calendar, and bucket list all at once.
— Lilly Svea Jarlsjo, Plan II

Since my admission to the university, I knew I wanted to study abroad, but I didn't know how different I would feel after the fact.  Coming from a low-income background, I knew my options would be narrow, but I took a chance regardless as I scoured the Texas Global portal.  Through many hyperlinks and department searches later, I stumbled across the Normandy Scholar Program and from there, the dominoes of life fell into place.  It feels a little corny when someone tells you that the journey you're about to embark on will change your life, but when past alumni speak highly about this program, believe them.  Yes, it is a long, grueling semester: full of horrifying testimonies and gruesome realities from survivors of the war, poignant writing critiques that may leave your ego a little bruised, and mandatory WWII movie nights that will have you craving pizza on Mondays, but it will also feel like there was nearly not enough time as you pack your suitcase for the last time.  The opportunity to study under incredibly intelligent historians and alongside your curious peers should not be taken lightly and this experience will be one of, if not the most, pivotal moments in your academic career.  The Normandy Scholar Program is your best chance to not only travel to several countries at a lower cost than other study abroad programs offered here at the university, but most importantly, to develop a nuanced and rich understanding of the Second World War and its rippling effect in the modern world.
— Valkyrie Church, Anthropology

What makes someone a Normandy Scholar?  It’s more than visiting historical sites and taking history classes—anyone can do that.  Being a Normandy Scholar is a significant commitment, requiring dedication to growing as a student of history and contributing a valuable perspective to the ongoing discussion of its significance.  It's about the commitment of everyone in the class to delve deeper into history; it's about the dedication to honoring those who came before us and understanding history beyond the classroom.  This commitment should not be taken lightly, as it carries a significant weight of responsibility.  Just as on the eve of D-Day, difficult decisions had to be made.  Class discussions were always engaging and thought provoking, each one of the professors you meet are not only experts on their field but also are among the best professors at UT.  Now, it was not easy; indeed, it has been the most challenging semester at UT for me. Sacrifices had to be made; most of my nights were spent reading books and writing essays, where the PCL and coffee became my best friends.  Yet, it has been the single most important experience during my time at UT.  The work was hard, but the reward was much greater. The trip around Europe not only brought me closer to my NSP comrades, but I now have a group of friends whom I know I can trust, whom I know will always do their best, and who are extremely intelligent. The value of these friendships is immeasurable, and it's a bond that will last a lifetime.
— Marcelo Molina, Urban Studies

As a Normandy Scholar, you will discover a few things: 1) the nature of truth, 2) why the world is the way it is, and 3) what motivates people.  You will do nothing more fulfilling during your college experience than dedicating a semester to understanding the history of World War II.  The incredible teachers who run the program will challenge your every assumption by showing you how the cataclysmic violence and societal change of the 1930s and 40s shaped everything around you.  For those who don’t know exactly what they want from life, this program will help you find purpose.  If you do know what you want to do, this knowledge is genuinely applicable to whatever career you have ambitions towards, whether it be public service, finance, engineering, or anything really.  My WWII knowledge was priceless for my work on foreign policy research in D.C. in the summer following the program.  Most importantly, the Normandy Scholar Program is exhilarating.  NSP is for the sort of person who likes learning more about the world through not only studying it but also experiencing it.  During the semester, I investigated historical murders and defended them, bonded with my classmates at movie nights, and read a ridiculous number of books (but they looked really cool on my bookshelf).  And of course, you will spend an unforgettable month across Europe.  Perhaps you want to dance to jazz in Paris and techno in Berlin – or maybe you just want to nap in the shadow of an 11th-century Norman cathedral or the beautiful fields of London’s Hyde Park.  I did all those things, and I sincerely hope you do too.
— Gavin Harris, Plan II

The NSP has been a transformative experience, even though the semester felt like it passed so quickly.  One of the most important things this program taught was how to learn history and how to develop critical thinking skills to analyze it.  Every professor in this program truly cares about their students and is so passionate about the material they teach, making this program so impactful for the students.  The materials that were assigned throughout the semester were both engaging and challenging, including the stories of soldiers in the Red Army, writings from Nazi theorists, and accounts from the occupation of France.  Every reading assigned was from a unique perspective and strengthened my understanding of the war past the surface level. The readings and movies often brought emotion into the history of the war, adding so much depth to the in-class discussions and essays.  This program also gave me the opportunity to meet great people with different academic backgrounds, which made the trip an amazing experience. From the beaches and countrysides of D-Day to the sprawling cities, every site we visited held so much historical importance and was the perfect ending to the Normandy Scholar Program.
— Uma Phadke, International Relations & Global Studies, Plan I Honors

I first learned of the Normandy Scholar Program when I was a senior in high school. I had just committed to UT in Psychology and researched the internet to see if UT offered any history clubs or programs that I could join during undergrad, as I have always had an immense interest in history (especially in World War II).  The very first link that popped up for me was something called the “Normandy Scholar Program,” offering 18 students in the spring semester the opportunity to take the same five classes together about World War II, ending with a month-long trip to Europe visiting important museums and sites from the war.  Immediately I thought, “This program sounds perfect. Not only will I learn about World War II, a topic that I have always enjoyed learning about, but it will give me the chance to see all these prominent sites in person, in addition to making lifelong friends with my classmates.”  I knew right then and there, that when the time came, I would apply for NSP as soon as I could.  Two and a half years later, I was ecstatic to find out that I got into NSP.  Although excited, I was nervous too.  I understood that NSP would not just be academically challenging but emotionally challenging as well.  My spring 2025 semester is one that I will never forget.  Normandy challenged me in a way that I have never been challenged before, and there sure were moments when I felt I couldn’t handle it all. But I believed in myself.  I got into this program for a reason.  I knew that if I could make it through this semester, I could tackle any hard thing that would come my way.  I told myself to try my best and that I could do anything I set my mind to.  And I did just that with the rest of my cohort at my side, all of us supporting one another.  Our papers, readings, class discussions, and films were thought-provoking, but seeing everything we learned in person made the whole NSP experience even more special.  Standing in the exact locations of the war that we learned about throughout the entirety of the semester was an aspect of our education that fostered a deeper understanding.  The day that we visited the Normandy American Cemetery and Omaha Beach is a day that I will remember for the rest of my life.  I truly felt connected to all the soldiers and civilians who were impacted by the war.  Experiencing a feeling of surrealism throughout the rest of my time in Europe, I realized that one of the most important lessons I learned from this program was to never take life for granted.  The Normandy Scholar Program has taught me how to be more appreciative of myself and others, encouraged me to stick up for a just society, and how to formulate healthy, happy relationships with fellow peers.  I am forever grateful for the experiences, memories, and friendships this program has given me.  I am honored to be a part of the Normandy Scholar Program Class of 2025.
— Helena Sawvel, Psychology

The Frank Denius Normandy Scholar Program provides students with both an incomparable education and a rare opportunity to build true community within their classes.  The Normandy Scholar Program offers students an invaluable opportunity to deconstruct a significant era of world history and reassemble it with the careful consideration of a puzzle, slowly debating and challenging one another year by year, piece by piece, until the full scope of our contemporary world is displayed.  By allowing students the academic freedom to explore such devastating and inspiring topics the program ensures that participants finish in May with a well-rounded and mature perspective both on the events of the Second World War and the world that they inevitably built.  Additionally, the difficult conversation topics and debates held within class between students cultivate a unique sense of respect and trust that is, positively, unlike any other academic environment students will have previously experienced.  I am incredibly grateful for my time within the Normandy Program and the lifelong friends I made through it.  I cannot wait for the next cohort to meet their phenomenal professors in January and fall into true fellowship and camaraderie together.
— Lauren Dulac, History 

Read More: NSP Testimonials since 2005.