Before studying at Temple, McGrath was in the Navy, stationed on a ship in the Mediterranean for 10 months. He spent time in the ports of Gibraltar, Malta, Spain, France, and Greece, but he was home-ported in Naples, Italy. Naples became almost like home to McGrath, being familiar not only with the tourist attractions such as Pompeii, but also local spots such as the brick-oven pizzeria near the port. However, McGrath never stepped foot in Rome before studying abroad with Temple, so the idea of coming in the Eternal City was appealing.

As much as Naples was familiar, McGrath became extremely immersed in the Roman culture through Temple Rome. Through his daily Italian, Art History, and Film courses, he and his classmates navigated their way through the language barrier, vague directions to on-site classes, and legal filming limitations.