Nam from Vietnam joined us in 2017 for our Academic Semester Program. Here is her story…
I always tell myself: “you can go as far as your feet take you.” The aspiration to see the world beyond my birthplace, Hanoi, Vietnam, and to learn and grow in a new environment drove me to study abroad in the U.S. at eighteen. At college in the U.S., I started learning Spanish and completely fell in love with the language. Knowing three languages not only allows me to explore and appreciate different cultures, but also to understand more my interests and myself. I am fascinated my intercultural communication, and I want to develop creative platforms for people from different backgrounds to exchange knowledge, culture, and social goods. With the language skills in hand, I encouraged myself to continue manifesting my interests into reality by embarking on the next journey to Argentina.
At my home university in the U.S., I develop my own academic plan called “Digital media a a Catalyst for Social Change” – using creative digital media platforms (texts, graphics, audio, and video) to address social issues, such as inequality in education, gender, and race, and to advocate for systemic change.
The study abroad opportunity in Buenos Aires with Mente Argentina has helped me become fluent in Spanish, and use it as an effective tool to explore the media landscape and socio-economic movement in Buenos Aires — the financial, industrial, and commercial hub of Argentina, and the melting pot of arts and culture in Latin America. As an avid learned, I will be able to challenge myself in a Spanish immersive experience within a university system very different from my own. I thrive most when dealing with discomfort and challenge, thus, I learn t feel comfortable within my own skin in a foreign environment, and open up to possibilities and diversity when living and studying overseas.
As I began my third year of college, I decided that it was time to broaden my horizon and start a new journey of knowledge mining and exploration. I sincerely believe that this study abroad opportunity with Mente has helped me see myself and my goals through a fresher lens, as well as learn and grow as much as I can with versatility, curiosity, perceptiveness, and receptivity.
