Second week of classes

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Romina Pinto

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Romina Pinto

<i>"Hello" in your host country's language:</i> Hello <i>Home Institution (your U.S. University/College):</i> University of South Carolina <i>Expected graduation year:</i> 2022 <i>Destination city & country:</i> Canterbury, United Kingdom <i>Program provider:</i> University of Kent <i>Major/minor:</i> Major: International Studies Minor: Linguistics <i>Demographics:</i> First-generation, non-traditional <i>Future career aspirations:</i> After graduation, I would like to pursue a master's degree abroad in Global Security and Borders or in Violence, Terrorism, and Security. My goal is to be a part of an international project or international nonprofit organization to help bring the best practices to law enforcement or assistance generally, to improve the lives of people. Especially vulnerable communities, where families face violence or other critical issues that threaten their safety and impede their development and progress. <i>Top 3 goals for your time abroad:</i> 1- Broaden my knowledge and gain the necessary expertise to strengthen my professional competencies regarding international cooperation and international security matters. 2- Increase my understanding regarding the UK's new role in Europe as the Brexit process takes place and how this affects the UK and neighboring countries. 3- Engage with a diverse community from whom I can draw more insight and different perspectives into the world, as well as establish lasting friendships and a network of contacts to further a cultural and professional collaboration.

After one more week of classes, I am already getting used to the new routine. I am also getting organized and coming up with a system to cover all the readings assigned and watch the lectures for each class, in addition to the necessary research for the essays, which are part of the assessment scheme. On Monday, I had my first meeting with the Mature Student Society. We met for lunch at the Rutherford Dining Hall. It was a big group, and I did get to talk to a few of the students sitting next to me. They were very nice, and I found out that most of them are undertaking a master’s program or Ph.D., but I also met another student who is about to start her undergraduate degree. She shared with me that for many years, she had worked in an office setting and that she had decided to go back to school to be a pharmacist. Thursday was a bit hectic because there were some last-minute changes to the rooms for the seminars on Politics of the European Union and The United Nations. These seminars will take place in the Grimond and Eliot buildings, respectively. Other than that, the week has gone smoothly. The weather is slowly changing, and some days have been a little colder. On Saturday, another student arrived at the house. He is renting one of the other rooms. His name is Robert; he is from China and is completing his Ph.D. in contemporary art, also at the University of Kent. He is young and seems friendly. He had been in Canterbury before, but because of the pandemic, he went back to China, and he is just now able to come back to continue his research. On Sunday, it was our neighbor’s birthday, so Wafaa and I went over to her house for a birthday dinner.