Three years studying at Essex University

My three years in Essex has come to an end. To conclude my time here I would like to share some highlights throughout the years. Although my second year was spent online. I still managed to pack my university time with loads of experiences and achievements. Down below I will name a few of the most memorable aspects from my time in Essex. 

Meeting many people from all over the world who were also studying at Essex University

It is very common at the University of Essex to first ask someone first their name. Then quickly afterwards ask them were they are from. In a place where many people you meet are either brought up in a different country or are children of immigrants, it becomes a very natural question to ask. By living and making friends with people from different cultures, I have challenged my own values and pushed me to reconsider what I thought of the world. This will forever be the experience that made the biggest impact on me as an international student. I was not only a foreigner in a mostly British context, I became one of many foreigners that was invited to create an international environment along fellow students and teachers. Learning how to adapt and contribute in this environment will, by far, be the most valuable lesson I bring with me going forward.

President of the Public Speaking Society

Leading a society together with my friends was a lot of fun, despite running it completely via a screen. It became a very different year, introducing new ways to run the society and there were great challenges in making students return every Wednesday to the sessions. However, I learned a lot and it will have been one of the greatest experiences of my time in Essex. It was even more fun to hand over the society to the next exec team who had never attended a meeting in person before. We combined the ways we did things on Zoom with how things were run in person. The new exec team even enrolled us in a speaking competition at Durham university. At which me and another student attended. There were students from four different universities with various backgrounds. We even ended up winning the competition with me taking home the first price. It felt so special to be recognized in this way and I received some very valuable feedback from the judges in the panel. I could not be more proud of how the society has progressed. I also cannot wait how it will be run in the future.

Basketball

The sport I love and have played for so many years. But it was not until my final year of studying at Essex University where I truly bonded with the team I was playing in. They were supportive, loving and challenged me on court. These girls became my family. The wonderful mix of cultures and different personalities made up our incredibly talented team. We set out the goal to win it all. Our team were determined to put every bit of commitment to make it happen. We started out without a coach and we made due with what we had. When our incredible coach Stan joined us in the middle of the first term. Our results improved and we became more and more organized. At the end of the season we had won both the cup and our league. The hard work paid off and many of us got to sign off from University with two medals around our necks.      

Graduation

I can’t help but include my graduation in this list. The final event, where I got to host my big family from back home in the town I had made my new home. So much love and joy packed into some intense days leading up to the final day. With me receiving my diploma in Politics and International Relations while wearing a hat and gown. A very special occasion for my family and a symbolic event for the end of an era in Colchester. I achieved what I wanted in both my degree and in my three years in Colchester that set me up for future success. Although it feels a bit bittersweet to now leave England. I realize that what I will miss is not the place itself, but rather the people I spent time with there.

These are some of the things that made my time studying at Essex University so special. I am grateful I had the chance to get involved in so many activities and meet so many different people. In the following blog post I will share how I decided on what to do next after my bachelor degree. I will also share what my plans are for the near future. It is only one of many ways to go after receiving a bachelor in Politics. But perhaps it can inspire somebody who would like to get into a similar field. 

Best,

Alva

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