Giulia: la mia esperienza in un College americano

My name is Giulia Trolli and I’m 22 years old. I’m originally from Varese, Italy, but I am currently studying at Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire (USA). My major is Biology with Pre-Vet track and I’m minoring in Chemistry and Psychology.

It has been three years since I started college here in the USA and, while the beginning was a bit tough, I am extremely satisfied of my experience. I’ve always wanted to study abroad but, due to the high costs, I wasn’t sure I would be able to. Soon after I graduated from high school, a friend of my mom told us about Mondo Insieme and GoCampus. I immediately got in contact with these organizations and prepared all the documents needed for my college application.

After completing the Common Application, I picked my top choices from the colleges that accepted me and I was lucky enough to be accepted into the institution that was my first choice: Colby-Sawyer College. I didn’t have a chance to visit the school physically before enrolling, but I fell in love with what I was able to see from their website. So, I got everything ready with my documents and left for the USA.

My first semester was intense as I needed to get adjusted to lots of different things. I was far from home in a place where I didn’t know anyone, where I had to speak a language that wasn’t my native one and where the educational system was different from the one I was used to. While there were times I was homesick, I soon got to meet amazing people that made me feel at home and at ease. I was able to meet students from all over the world and bond with them. My school assigned me a friendship family, which would provide great support throughout the years I spent here.

As I said the educational system is a bit different from what I was used to, but my advisor, a professor of the Biology department, helped me determine which classes to take and described me how the system worked. Colby-Sawyer College is a liberal arts college meaning, throughout the course of studies, we have to take one course for each different field (ex. literature, humanities, science, social sciences, etc.). I believe this was a really interesting addition compared to other colleges because it provided me a greater culture and exposed me to different subjects in case I wasn’t sure of my major.

Living on campus is an amazing experience as you live with your friends and see them every day. The friendships I made are extremely strong and part of it is because we live in such close contact. Soon I started seeing my college more like a home away from home than just an institution. I do get homesickness attacks and I do miss my family and friends back home but, when I go back to Italy during long breaks, I realize I miss my college “family” too.

Attending college in the USA provided me a variety of experiences besides knowledge. I was able to join many different clubs such as Cross-Cultural Club, Dance Club, Math Club and so on. By joining a club, you get to meet people with the same interests as you and talk about them. It’s also possible to join courses such as yoga and Zumba, workout or go for a swim at the college’s sports center with your friends. There are also lots of events going on every week, from singers to magicians, from dance events to film screenings.

As I said before, it has been three years since I started attending Colby-Sawyer College and, while it seemed such a long time at the beginning, it literally flew! I feel like it was yesterday when I started my experience here and now I’m starting my last semester. I am a little sad that it’s already almost time to leave this place and I’m going to miss it a lot (I’m already planning to visit my friends here once I’m gone!).

I am graduating in May and, as of right now, I’m planning of working in the research field as a laboratory technician for a while before going on to graduate school to obtain my master degree.

I am looking forward to the future, but I’m also never going to forget my college years. I’ve become so much more independent as living in college was the first time I was really on my own. I met amazing people that made me feel at home and soon became my second family. All the memories I’ve made here are going to stay with me forever and I’m pretty sure the friends I’ve met here are going to be with me for a long time.

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