Studying abroad is a dream for many students including one from English Studies Program UGM, Benedicta Angie. Since childhood, she had been curious about how people live their lives abroad. As a result, she had been actively searching for an opportunity to study abroad. Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA), a program that is funded by the government that gives both vocational and undergraduate students a chance to study abroad in great universities across the world for one semester, was the perfect opportunity for Angie to make her dream come true. After a long selection process, Angie was successfully enrolled in IISMA fully funded program at Korea University, Republic of Korea (South Korea). 

During her stay in Korea University, Angie was enrolled in four courses: Media and Popular Culture in Korea, Criminology, Beginner’s Korean II, and Introduction to Applied Linguistics. One of the most interesting things she spotted while studying in Korea was the Korean students’ competitiveness. Angie realised this difference when she compared her learning experience in Criminology class, which is dominated by Korean students, with other classes that are mostly taken by international students. 

 

“In class, the local students were not very active in asking and answering questions, they are rather very quiet. But after going through the midterm exam, you can feel how serious they had been studying,” she stated, “Our professor curved our final grades, and must I be honest with you, it was very hard to keep up with them. The contrast is very visible to me, because in other courses, where most students are international students, the class dynamics and competitiveness are not different from the one that I have here in UGM.”

Overall, Angie enjoyed her academic journey in Korea. The classes were fun albeit challenging, and the professors were very helpful. She was a little bit disappointed because she was unable to join any clubs due to her short visiting period. However, she was still able to socialise and made friends through project groups and the buddy association gatherings. 

Besides in-class activity, Angie did many activities to immerse herself in South Korean culture. She visited many palaces, museums, art galleries, and festivals. Most of those places were free of charge, especially on Chuseok (Korean thanksgiving). The people were also very welcoming. Despite the language barrier, they tried their best to understand the foreign students. 

From the exchange, aside from academics and multicultural insights, Angie learned to be patient to herself. This is a valuable insight that she would not have gained if she had not studied abroad in Korea. She stated, “Being in my comfort zone in Indonesia has made me forget that everyday is my first day of living. Sometimes I forget that as a human, I will make mistakes, there will be discomfort, and that life is not perfect. I learned so much that if I want to move forward, I must be patient with myself and enjoy the process.” 

After finishing the exchange program, Angie planned to finish her studies in time and enroll herself for a master’s degree abroad. In the meantime, she was eager to help friends who hope to go abroad by giving them advice that can help them with the preparation process. Aside from that, she also planned to use the knowledge she gained from the exchange program, especially Korean language, to fulfil her dream as a translator.

One of the English Studies Program students, Azizah Putri Chandra Kusuma, spent a whole semester at Siena, Italy as an IISMA awardee. IISMA is a study abroad exchange program held by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemendikbudristek), which offers students to study in highly reputable universities from all around the world for one semester. 

Azizah was eager to participate in this program because going abroad has been her dream since she was young. Due to financial reasons, she never had been able to take it into action. Upon discovering IISMA, Azizah thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to accomplish her dreams due to the great range of expenses the program offers. After going through a rigorous selection process, Azizah was finally declared as one of the awardees.

Azizah was very enthusiastic about the opportunity of studying abroad in Italy. She said, “Studying in Siena, Italy, as an IISMA awardee has been nothing short of transformative. Being in Italy means that the experience will be beyond just attending classes. It’s about immersing myself in a completely different academic environment and embracing the beauty of Italian cultures.”

During her academic journey in Italy, Azizah had an opportunity to collaborate with many other international students. This opportunity broadened her perspective and improved her communication skills. Besides the opportunity to study with many students from all over the world, Azizah also found the education system in Italy particularly interesting. In Italy, students have to take an oral exam in addition to the typical written exam. The oral exam is a one-on-one session with the professors discussing what students have learned during the class.

Beyond academics, Azizah also spent her time immersed with Italian culture. Siena was full of charming medieval streets and architecture rich in history. Azizah was particularly fond of Piazza del Campo. She used to sit in its front yard to have discussions with friends while enjoying local cuisines, such as pizza or gelato. Azizah noted that Siena differs in atmosphere from other big cities in Italy—it offers warmer and more intimate ambiance. The locals were friendly and welcoming towards Azizah, despite her struggles at communicating with the Italian language.

For Azizah, IISMA was a life-changing experience that had taught her valuable lessons inside and outside of the classroom. “Studying in Siena with classes that are mostly beyond my study field in English Literature has given me numerous insights that taught me to analyze topics from multiple perspectives and engage in discussion with confidence,” Azizah stated, “I also learned to appreciate cultural differences and embrace diverse environments, which also taught me the importance of cultural sensitivity or understanding that what is normal in one culture may be different in another.”

Azizah also noted that the exchange experience had increased her independence and resourcefulness. She also realised that her stay in Italy has also helped her improve her proficiency in Italian. Azizah was grateful to be participating in IISMA, which had become a journey of self-discovery as a learner with a mission to be an ambassador of Indonesian culture.

After completing IISMA, Azizah planned to apply what she had learned during her exchange program in her academic and professional journey. For short-term planning, Azizah was excited to help fellow students who also want to study abroad but unable to afford preparation courses by being an IELTS mentor without charging a fee. For long-term planning, Azizah hoped to enrol in a master degree program abroad in order to further broaden her horizons. She mentioned, “Ultimately, this exchange has given me the motivation to pursue bigger goals, and I am excited to know where this experience will lead me next.”

A year prior to his enrolment to IISMA, Elkholy was already certain that he wanted to participate in this program. In order to succeed, this English Literature student of Batch 2021 had prepared himself by doing various preparations. Elkholy participated in ATF 2023, ISKA 2023 and some other organisations to gain more experiences in order to increase his chances of passing the first stage of selection. After passing the preliminary stage, Elkholy continued to prepare for the interview session by doing mock-up interviews. His efforts paid off because he was accepted as an IISMA Awardee at University of Leeds.

After going through a preparatory stage encompassing academic, financial, social, and technical aspects called IISMA Pre-Departure Series, Elkholy departed to University of Leeds on 16th of September. Upon arriving first at Manchester airport, Elkholy was warmly welcomed by a representative from University of Leeds. Prior to his departure, Elkholy had already received so many emails and newsletters from the university—which really proved to be a great source of information to help him settle in during his first weeks in Leeds. In addition to that, the university also gave two weeks of orientation filled with welcoming activities which really prepared Elkholy to start his academic lectures when week three came.

During his study period at Leeds, Elkholy was enrolled in four different modules. This was in accordance with the arrangement done by IISMA and the Study Abroad Team. These modules were Introduction to Psychology, Psychology in the Media, Challenges in Transport and Mobility and Natural Hazards. Elkholy intentionally chose modules that are not directly related to English Literature or one specific field, because he wanted to learn something entirely new. The efficacious teaching methods and well-structured assessments boosted Elkholy’s academic journey experience. Overall, Elkholy felt that he has been well enlightened of academic life at the world-renowned University of Leeds—an opportunity he would forever cherish.

Apart from academic obligations, Elkholy also experienced new cultural exposure during his stay.  It was easy to spot many castles and historical landmarks, which were still well preserved. Every city Elkholy visited had an art gallery and a museum housing their own individual contribution to the country’s history. Elkholy did not only learn new cultures from visiting historical sites or museums. For him, even the mundane activities of grocery shopping or interaction with locals in public transport were the greatest contributors to him learning new cultures. 

Elkholy was a little bit reluctant to bid farewell to the city that had left such great impressions on him. During his journey back home, he reflected how this IISMA journey has been nothing but extraordinarily worthwhile. It gave Elkholy the chance to study outside his major in a globally renowned university, exposed him to new cultures and people, enlightened his view upon the outside world, and shed light on possible future prospects of my study. There might be difficulties along the way, but they were easily paid-off with the vast amount of new academic and global experience he gained.

(Photo credit: Elkholy)

Waking up in a room with a view of yellowing and reddening trees would have been my wildest dream until a year ago. Every new thing that I have experienced from last year’s September until December is the result of sleepless nights and staring at my laptop for four months. IISMA truly gave me the chance to taste my childhood wish, and I could never be more grateful than I am today. As this is one of my biggest milestones, I cherish every second that I spend in Dublin, Ireland, and make sure to engrave all passing moments in my mind–probably in my phone’s gallery as well. I am Konan, and here is a glimpse of my life as an IISMA awardee in University College Dublin.

A brief introduction is a must before I start. Born by the name Qonita Risqi Setya Ananda, I am currently a third year student in the English Department of Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta. Not a very fun fact, I can’t drive, so no wonder I enjoy my time in Dublin too much because of the pedestrian-friendly public facilities. During my four-month stay in Dublin, I am taking four courses under Arts and Humanities. Along with nine other students from different home universities, I began my study abroad journey on September 2 as we flew from Indonesia to Ireland. Now, here is the real thing, I promise you.

The academic year in Ireland starts in autumn, which takes place in September. Just like what we commonly have in universities in Indonesia, here they provide two weeks of various orientation events, such as welcoming ceremony, freshers week where you can sign up for clubs and societies, info sessions for various purposes, for instance the immigration session held for non-EU international students, and many more. In the following week, the classes start for level two or intermediate courses, while beginner courses have to wait for another week. Classes are divided into two types, lecture and tutorial or seminar, which is a new thing for me as we don’t have them back in my home major. Lecture is a big class dedicated to delivering materials, while the tutorial only consists of 15-20 students solely for group discussion and in-depth review on the materials from the lecture. 

Being an international student in UCD certainly has its own perks, and one of them being the eligible participants of the Cultural Programme. The said programme is dedicated for us to enjoy the most of our stay here by holding events and offering trips for free. We have gone to some stunning places in Ireland, such as Kilkenny with its castle and mediaeval town, surfing in Sligo, cycling on a 32-kilometre track in Westport, and enjoying the majestic Dún Aonghasa in Inishmore, Galway. I am really grateful for the opportunities given by UCD for such a short stay, and here I say it, it is all worth it!

Even though living abroad gets you really excited, you are lying if you say you don’t miss those little things from home. Of course I miss seblak, nasi Padang, and the convenient online transportation. I’d love to give an honourable mention to my friends from PPI Irlandia who kindly hold various Indonesian-themed events for Indonesian students in Ireland, which feels like bringing us back home. We got the precious chance to have a warm gathering with other IISMA awardees in Ireland and master’s and doctoral students on October 21, and even met the Ambassador of Indonesia for the United Kingdom, Dr. Desra Percaya. Fun fact, he is a remarkable saxophone player, and we were lucky to be able to watch his performance of Terima Kasih Cinta by Afgan on that sunny afternoon.

That particular gathering event was very memorable for me. The previous president of PPI Irlandia, Zain, shared a bit how Ireland feels merrier when the IISMA awardees are there. The number of Indonesian students in Ireland is significantly lower than in the United Kingdom, our nearest neighbour, and events like these almost feel like a family reunion. Compared to the students, there are more Indonesian diaspora than what I had imagined. They are also the people who continue to help us during our stay, and I’d really love to reciprocate the gesture someday, fingers crossed, when I get the opportunity to travel to Ireland again.

Aside from the fellow Indonesians we met here, I have always dreamt about having friends from across the globe who will actually keep in touch, not as a one-time thing only. Solely for this reason, I would like to thank my international friends that have introduced me to new celebrations that definitely made me feel so at home. One of these celebrations is Friendsgiving, that is celebrating Thanksgiving but with your friends instead. Jette, the event planner, suggested that we all bring a dish from our respective country to enjoy together, and that way, we actually exchange new culture in a fun way. Since the feeling is mutual, I didn’t hesitate to give them heartfelt souvenirs from home–one of them being a tote bag I designed myself–as a memento for the moment I have shared with them.

Ireland has been a place for me to try out many things for the first time for the last four months. My dream of walking along meadows, looking at sheep and cows like what I read in my childhood stories, strolling down the city, and taking a breather at city parks–all of them have been achieved here. Last but not least, the network and memories I have made here are priceless and could never be traded with anything in this world. Shall I have the chance to visit for a longer period of time here, I won’t hesitate to fly right away. Thank you to my support system back home–my family and friends–and my new family here, you are a part of my life now. Of course to the IISMA program, my deepest gratitude would never cease.

 

 

The past four months might have been the best four months of my life. Indonesia International Student Mobility Awards has given me a chance to study at one of the most prestigious universities in the world, Nanyang Technological University, in Singapore. I made some good friends, learned new lessons in both classes and in life, and created beautiful memories that are worth cherishing in the Lion City. Here are some stories of my life in Singapore!

Adapting to Life in Singapore

Is it hard to adapt to life in Singapore?

Very hard lah. At first. But overall? No, not really.

What made it hard, then? For me, it’s because I come from a small city in Indonesia: Yogyakarta. I’m used to living in a small village with its quiet and laid back lifestyle, far from the hustle-bustle of a city. Despite my love for traveling, I usually only travel to quiet mountainous areas,  and do not venture to metropolitans like Jakarta or Surabaya. So, I was overwhelmed when I set foot in Singapore for the first time. How could I not? Tall buildings surrounded us everywhere! And everything looked so modern and lavish, which encapsulated the essence of “city life” so accurately. I wondered if I could survive living here, with strangers as my companions, and in an entirely different country. 

I was also concerned with the living arrangements when we would arrive in NTU. First of all, I am a shy person who takes a long time to open up to new people. Secondly, I didn’t really like the idea of living with a roommate. And I had to deal with this in the span of 4.5 months? Was that enough time for us to bond? At the end of the day, only time would tell.

Academic Life at NTU

At NTU, there are three kinds of lecture styles: 1) seminars; 2) lectures; 3) tutorials. In the English Department, we usually have lectures: the professors/lecturers explain concepts and information to us while we take notes. This is also what we do in lecture class at NTU. For seminar classes, it’s usually applied for smaller classes consisting of 20-30 students. The students will then be divided into smaller groups, around 4 to 5 students per group. In this class, we’re expected to read the materials ahead of time and discuss them with our teammates and the professors. Overall, the seminar class is way more interactive than lectures and, in my opinion, it’s also the most fun style! For tutorial classes, it should be similar to what we have in our department.

On top of that, we also have to study the necessary materials before coming to class. Thankfully, NTU’s syllabus and system are very detailed and comprehensive, so we had no difficulty accessing the materials. Aside from presentation slides, we also had to watch lecture videos and read several articles before the lecture or seminar began.

The classes I attended were all exciting and full of new knowledge to learn. Furthermore, all of the staff, from the professors themselves to the tutors, are very approachable and easy to contact. They are also very attentive to their students and make sure that we are all doing well in their classes. In seminar-based classes, the professors even send an email to the students when they don’t attend the class without informing them. 

I registered for four courses this semester: Introduction to Computational Thinking and Programming, Cultural Intelligence, Leadership in the 21st Century, and Climate and Climate Change. Both Computational Thinking and Climate Change are lecture-based classes, while Cultural Intelligence and Leadership are seminar-based classes. Computational Thinking also has tutorial and lab sessions on top of lectures from the professors. Each of these courses has three Academic Units (credits), which translates into three-hour sessions. 

I struggled the most with Computational Thinking since I study in the English Department at my home university, thus I didn’t dabble in mathematics and logic. In contrast, I enjoyed Cultural Intelligence and Leadership a lot as they examine human communication skills and values that can be applied in real life. In addition, we were divided into teams in those two classes, which gave us a chance to experience working together with people from various backgrounds. Climate Change was very technical, yet it was also fun to learn the details of the Earth’s climates and how it has changed over time (although learning several physics equations was not as fun).

Social Life 

During my stay in NTU (and by extension Singapore), I made a lot of new friends. Initially, NTU staff hosted a brief orientation program for us IISMA awardees and assigned us into groups and assigned us a buddy, who acted as our host for the rest of the semester. There were also other orientations and networking events for international students to help us integrate into the life in NTU and Singapore. 

Besides that, I also made friends from my classes and communities that I joined there. Unfortunately, NTU clubs are not open for exchange students, so we couldn’t join any there. Therefore, most of us looked for friends elsewhere. Some international students partook in parties and clubbing, while my fellow awardees sometimes joined in casual activities like visiting a museum or having lunch together. 

For me personally, my social life mostly revolved around going out with some close friends, both from IISMA and other NTU students, and my activities in two gamelan communities. I visited museums, strolled around the quiet Peranakan establishment, cycled along the East Coast, attended rehearsals for both Javanese and Sundanese gamelan, and watched a gamelan performance with my friends. 

Singa Nglaras

I’d like to give an honorable mention to Singa Nglaras because they were a significant part of my IISMA experience. 

I searched for “gamelan community in Singapore” to find out which one is still active (because gamelan communities’ social media accounts don’t get updated often). It is called Singa Nglaras—meaning “relaxing lion”—and it seems trustworthy, for lack of a better word, as it’s officially under the Department of Southeast Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore (NUS). I was hesitant to contact them until I read that they welcome everyone who wants to join, musical experience or not. Thus, I finally contacted them.

I was fairly nervous at first because I found out that there were no Indonesians nor students in sight during the first rehearsal I attended. It was my fault though; I thought Singa Nglaras members comprise NUS students and/or some Indonesians, given that it is under NUS and a gamelan group. Another culture shock that I faced is that they read the song’s notes in English, whereas I’m used to reading them in Javanese. 

I hadn’t come for rehearsals for two years, so my skills in nabuh were rusty. The leader, Mas Xinwei, said that they are all still learning, so I should take it easy and learn alongside them. (Being a naive trusting person that I was, of course I believed him). I was shocked when they played like professionals during the rehearsal. I was very impressed with them, though. They were like a well-oiled machine that worked in synergy and helped each other whenever they needed it.

I never thought that they could be that nice. All of them are good people; they were patiently teaching me how to play certain instruments, encouraging me to hang out with them and share my life in Java, playfully forcing me to take away the food they bring to rehearsals because I was a student living in a dorm, and sometimes invited me to ride a cab with them to the nearest MRT station. The kindest thing they did to date is holding a farewell party for us IISMA-NTU students when we were about to go home to Indonesia.

Lessons I Learned in IISMA

I’ve learned a lot in the span of four months of the program. One of my goals was to improve my capability for intercultural communications. The lessons I gained from classes, combined with the small yet diverse cultural backgrounds of Singapore contribute a lot to achieving this goal. The most useful lesson I learned from class, especially Cultural Intelligence one, is how to manage and resolve conflicts effectively.

I also said I’d like to make friends with those who love cultural customs and traditions. And I found plenty of them! I met someone from China who eagerly explained her culture to me. Another friend I met is a Singaporean with a Peranakan background whose work in contemporary dance is inspired by his background. Another friend I have loved Javanese traditions and philosophies, which resulted in lengthy discussions about them. I also have plenty of friends who taught me about Singapore and what it has to offer.

My name is Farah Nadira Lukita Dewi, a first batch IISMA Awardee to the University of Padua, Italy, for the fall semester of 2021. I was in my second year of undergraduate studies in the English Department when I joined the program. Through this writing, I will be sharing about my life-changing experiences during IISMA, both the social and academic life.

For the first few days of my arrival, I still could not believe my eyes that I had finally made my way there. Going abroad for an exchange program has always been the biggest dream of mine and all struggles in the pre-departure preparation were paid off. Italy, specifically the University of Padua, however, was not my first destination. My first choice fell to Newcastle University, London. After learning that they did not accept TOEFL ITP, the only English proficiency certificate that I had, there was not much time left to take another type of test, so I decided to change my choice on the host university. After many considerations including the local language and offered courses, I was convinced that University of Padua was the best option for me. I did not regret it one bit.

I, along with the other 29 awardees, lived in the same dorm building. It was only around two kilometers away from the city center. Since everything was relatively close, I usually commuted by bus or simply on foot. Italy, to my surprise, had more things in common with Indonesia than I had expected, which is a good thing because it truly made it feel like home. The locals were very friendly and helpful even when I did not speak and understand Italian whatsoever at first. I’d have random locals start sharing their trip experiences in Indonesia with me as soon as they learned I’m an Indonesian.

Being a Muslim was not as scary as I thought it would be either. If anything, I can say that most people respect it, though Islam belongs to the minority group and thus there were barely any mosques in my city. Some local women even came up to me to compliment my hijab and how I looked good in it. Also when eating in a restaurant, they would warn me if the food contained pork. However, I can admit that my options for halal food were very slim, which forced me to cook more. One thing that caught my attention was the lack of time discipline. Surprisingly, just like Indonesian culture, it was much more common for people not to be punctual. There were many times when my professors would start the class five to ten minutes late and the buses did not operate as scheduled.

My academic life was not any less interesting. Because of the pandemic, the classes had to be conducted partially online and physically. However, attendance was not mandatory for most courses. Students would still be given the opportunity to take final exams even if they chose to be non-attending students but with different workloads. The teaching methods seemed to vary from one course to another. There was one course in which the professor barely gave lectures and thus only demanded the students to be actively engaged in class forums and discussions. Meanwhile, in a different course, the professors were the ones leading the class with lectures. Also, some courses barely gave any assignments and even midterms. Hence, final exams contributed 100% to our final marks.

Most humanities fields held the final exams orally, which I struggled with at first since I was more used to paper-based exams. I even failed one of the courses once. Thankfully, I was able to retake the exam the following month and passed it with a satisfying result. They also allowed us to reject our marks and gave us chances to retake the exams more than once should we were not satisfied with the results. The grading system was also different from that in Universitas Gadjah Mada. The marking system was on a scale of 18 to 30, with 18 being the minimum passing score and 30 being the maximum. It was definitely not an easy job to get a good mark. My local friend informed me that it was common for her peers and herself to retake the exams at least three times before getting a score above 26. But, since I was in a short exchange program, it was impossible for me to retake the exams more than once. Therefore, I was highly motivated to make up for the failing exam by trying my best in the next period.

The international office staff member was also accommodating us from the pre-departure up to the return, including informing us on how to fill out the study plan, apply for the residence permit, and other useful academic-related life. I had to change some of the selected courses because of the overlapping timetables. It took me a while to commute from one class to another because unlike Universitas Gadjah Mada, the faculties of the University of Padua were not centralized in one area. Some of them are even located in a different city that is like an hour away by bus from the city center.

IISMA gave me the opportunity to meet people from various backgrounds and learn about new cultures not only through social events that I participated in but also by traveling to other EU countries since I was the holder of a European visa. I met and interacted with other Indonesians who resided in those countries. They got to share their experiences living abroad as Indonesians, which also motivated me to do the same in the future.

My ups and downs during IISMA have had a strong impact on my life. Though it was a relatively short period of time, I never went a single day without learning something new. Most importantly, it taught me to be independent and solve problems on my own. The gap between the Eastern cultures in which I grew up and the Western cultures to which I was exposed to has given me a new perspective to see the world. It is important to have pride in our identity while also maintaining respect for others. I hope that everything I learned from my five-month stay in Italy will be a valuable tool that will assist me in my future academic journey.

 

 

Joining the IISMA (Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards) program has been the highlight of my academic life. Ever since I entered university, I wanted to join an exchange abroad so I could learn more about different lives and cultures. I wanted to make friends with people from other countries and compare how different or similar we are. My dream finally came true when I heard the information about a new program, IISMA. Not only would I get to experience becoming an exchange student, but I would also be funded fully by the government of Indonesia. I was lucky enough to receive the scholarship. Not only that but at a top university, the University of Edinburgh. In this reflective essay, I would like to share my experiences of the adjustments of my studying abroad as an exchange student in two different groups, namely the academic life and social life.

Regarding academic life, there are several things I had to consider. In terms of reading, I had to read a lot of material from different books for one meeting in a course. In Indonesia, spesifically Universitas Gadjah Mada, it is not common to read many pages of one book for a course, let alone hundreds of pages from several different books. This was what happened when I joined the program. Besides, I had to be really independent in terms of studying at the University of Edinburgh. Instructions and reading lists were usually given before all classes started. We are supposed to have understood the system of study so that when the classes have started, we should have understood everything relating to the courses. All things relating to things such as tutorials, the marking system, and assignments should have been at our fingertips. This surely forced me to adapt myself to the system quickly and became one of the stressors, so to speak, that I found in the program. Furthermore, the marking system may put Indonesian students into a problem as the system employed in the UK universities is more complicated. What I did find surprising was the way that the university in the UK is very attentive to the student’s well-being, especially their mental health. GPs or General Practitioners are available everywhere, including in the university, and it is very easy for us students to get access to one. The university also provides each student with a personal tutor. We can ask them anything and they will help us in any way they can.

Edinburgh for me is like Jogja, a small city but full of culture. There are almost always men wearing kilts down the streets and playing the traditional Scottish instrument, the bagpipe. The buildings are old vintage buildings, like ones you would find in the Harry Potter movies. As for the weather, it is very unpredictable. One minute it was sunny, the next it would rain. It was also always freezing cold. The joke says that the UK has four different seasons, but for us Indonesians, it may have only two seasons, namely cold and very cold seasons.

As expected, living in Edinburgh is expensive, especially food-wise. Local supermarkets like Lidl and Aldi might be a good choice to shop in since they are affordable. This way, we have to spend money wisely as the funds supporting us were only enough to survive. Takeaways are the biggest problem since there are so many near the university yet they are expensive. One takeaway meal could cost the equivalent of one week of groceries. As a Muslim, it is also important to read the ingredients of something before buying it, because not everything is halal, even though it is pretty easy to find halal food. Foods are much blander compared to foods in Indonesia, which is another reason why I prefer cooking rather than eating out. Thank God I had brought a lot of spices!

When we are living in the UK, we have the experience of getting along with a different culture and people, as well as how to behave in such situations. When I was living in Edinburgh, I had three flatmates: two from the UK and one from Australia. I had to speak English all the time. As we were living under the Western culture, the celebrations that we had were related to the culture. For instance, in December, we celebrated Christmas. Yet I did not have to join the celebration except when my friends had a non-religious party. At the party, there was some food that we could share. So, I joined the celebration that I thought was not problematic to my religion. I began to control what to join and what to not join. As regards partying, it can happen two or three times a week or sometimes more as it is considered a social event. At the party, people drink and socialize too. It is a great way to make friends.

Regarding the Muslim society in Edinburgh, it consists of two groups: students and common people that live there. There is one central mosque near the university where men and women attended the prayers every day, even the Jummah prayers. This is different from Indonesia where women mostly stay at home to pray. To me, this mosque reminded me of home and I felt the safest when I was here. At the University of Edinburgh, there is an Islamic Society that I joined. The members are Muslim students from all over the world. Events such as having dinner together and game night were held by the Islamic Society with the purpose that Muslim students from different backgrounds and nationalities would get along closely. This is to help them with loneliness and homesickness so that they have a community and family.

From my experience of living for three months in Edinburgh as an exchange student, I now can make up my mind about my life. Living in a different culture will open your mind about differences and how to handle them. In the UK, people are tolerable. They will appreciate your ideas, religion, ways of thinking, and culture. In this way, they can accept people from different backgrounds and nationalities. So, we do not have to worry about showing our national identity. Besides, in terms of studying, we need to work hard because the systems are relatively harder than that in Indonesia. Knowing the complete system of education in the UK is necessary for our success in the future. Apart from that, we also have to be able to manage our social life, so that we can get along with people from different backgrounds and cultures. I do hope this very short time in Edinburgh will prepare me for when I study for my higher degree there in the future.

 

Hello, folks! I am Nazra from English Department 2019, and I was awarded the IISMA scholarship during its 2021 pilot project. Here, I have written several bits of reflections that I deem to be notable during my study period in Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.

During my studies, I have always known that I am drawn into the humanities. However, the choice to delve deeper into it wasn’t always available. While I was already satisfied learning fractions of the humanities in English literature, I know that many elements from pure humanities will really contribute to my seeing of the big picture. Therefore, when I was choosing my host university for IISMA, I didn’t have many things to consider; I chose the university that provided the courses that I wanted to study. When I got accepted, there were many things that hindered me, such as unavailability of the courses that I wanted or the clashing timetables. However, I still obtained the majority of what I came there for, and it was such a great experience.

I am extremely grateful for the courses that I took in Sapienza University. I never imagined that I would study Gender Economics at any point in my life, but it turned out to be a really interesting subject to learn. Many famous scholars in the field of gender economics came to the course as guest lecturers in seminars, and their insights on the field contributed to my understanding of the status quo of gender equality. I also learned under the chair of the Global Humanities department in her Critical Theories course, and needless to say I gained comprehensive knowledge on various academic theories that I can apply even in the courses of the English Department at UGM. As silly as it sounds, I finished my study in Sapienza University believing that I could really pursue a degree in the Global Humanities.

In Italy, many lecturers emphasize the need for oral exams in gauging their student’s understanding of the materials. It will be extremely common to see you or your peers failing exams here and there, but fortunately there’s always another opportunity to make-up for bad scores. Personally, going from studying with paper-based output to one with producing a spontaneous oral end-product is a very demanding chore on my end, as I have to change my whole routine of facing exams and exercises. However, I learned a lot from actually practicing this: my presentation and public speaking skills have grown tremendously better from what it was before. I learned how to communicate my thoughts in a way that my audiences would understand best. The lecturers also taught me that failing an exam isn’t the end of the world; they give you constructive feedback, and would gladly encourage you to attempt another one at a later date.

As I navigate through life in Rome, I am very grateful that I befriended people who are there to have fun with me or assist me whenever I face difficulties. Having friends that are local and international helped me to gain insights from two different viewpoints: my local Italian friends help me get immersed into the Roman lifestyle and taught me the Italian language, while my international friends are there for me to experience new things in the city together. I find people who live in the Mediterranean area to be very warm and welcoming, and I am glad that Italy serves as my entryway when experiencing life in Europe. I think of the connections that I created with my friends in Italy to be real ones, and they have unknowingly become one of my motivations to come back when I have the opportunity to pursue my study in the area.

Socializing with my friends became a really positive experience for me. People that I met, most of the time, come from different cultural backgrounds. It had sort of become a habit for me to ask people where they came from when we first met and vice versa. From there on, the conversation would involve the exchange of cultural information: I get to share with them about Indonesian culture, and they would also share with me bits of their own. I find this process really amazing and it definitely has contributed to my current worldview. From IISMA, I get the chance to experience not only Roman culture, but also culture from other countries: my Brazilian friend would host me for dinners, my Pakistani friends would brew me their traditional tea, or my Filipino friend would watch Filipino movies with me. To me, all of these are extremely endearing moments where I can appreciate cultures from various places I have never visited.

IISMA has also given me the chance to travel to places I could have only dreamed of before. As the holder of the national visa of a European country, I have the permission to travel around the entire area. This has been a very precious opportunity for me as I get to visit notable museums and monuments. Furthermore, through PPI, I got to befriend several Indonesians living in different European countries I visited. I learned so much from their experiences, and since they live there as the fruit from their academic endeavors, they really inspired me to achieve more in my studies.

My experience at IISMA wasn’t always pleasant; there will be moments where things go a little bit rocky and I have to depend on myself to solve those problems. I have also realized the limitations that I have as a foreigner who stays short-term compared to people who have settled for a long while in the area. Sometimes, it feels as if I am required to learn what I was supposed to learn in a year in the compact timespan of five months. Despite all of that, it is enough for me to be aware that I have grown tremendously from the person I was before IISMA. I believe that this change is for the better. IISMA has delivered me closer to my goals, big or even small ones. And for that, I will be forever thankful.

 

Studying in Ireland through IISMA was a lot of firsts for me: first time going away from home for a long period of time, first time going overseas, and first time studying abroad. Aside from now having something to casually flaunt about during family reunions, there are many perks and rewards that come with it. They can be divided into three categories: education-wise, soft skills, and personal experiences.

Education-wise, it is truly enlightening to experience another country’s education system that, in various ways, might be different or the same to our own. Oddly enough, the learning process at my host university didn’t differ much from my current major; most of the assignments were in the form of essays, group works were just as common as individual works, and even the type of students didn’t pose so much of a difference (although this might be different depending on the student and the courses taken). I found myself following the courses without significant blunders, which I was grateful for. This had caught me off guard at first, for I had been expecting to adapt a lot to a drastically different education system. But then again, it can be one of its important takeaways: we might never know we’ve been assuming until we actually go ahead and plunge headfirst into the environment.

That being said, there were indeed some aspects that stood out about how the classes were conducted. For one, the lecturers were on an equal footing with the students. In Indonesia, it is quite common to see lecturers being put on a pedestal. But in my host university, the lecturers are like a good friend that are always there when you need them. They respected the students on a whole nother level and understood when students were having a hard time, busy, or even when they couldn’t attend the class. They would give extension dates on assignments if asked, even provide additional resources, and set up private meetings to help the students. In short, they went to great lengths to accommodate their students. This created an easy and supportive learning environment, encouraging the students to seek help and communicate their difficulties without too much pressure. The fact that the lecturers are on a first-name basis with the students in many English-speaking countries might contribute to this phenomenon, something that is hardly possible and can kick you out of the class if done in Indonesia.

Aside from the lecturers, the system in general was such a joy to experience. Students were allowed to try a class for two weeks before deciding whether or not to take the class or not. If they did, they could officially sign up for the module, or if they didn’t, they could easily change the class for another. It gave the students more freedom to choose and made the whole learning more enjoyable and less stressful. Speaking of classes, first meetings were used to explain in detail what the course entailed, the activities, the tasks and the assignments. All the assignments were given upfront, along with the grading marks and feedback mechanism. For example, if the lecturers said there would only be two essays to submit during the course of the semester, then two essays it was, no additional assignments or tasks given in the middle of the semester. Students knew exactly what to expect from the first to the last week of the semester.

Education is one of the strongest tools you can use to leverage your life. I had heard that phrase all my life, but it wasn’t until IISMA that I finally understood how loaded the message it tried to communicate. I’d been having doubts about whether to pursue graduate study (Master’s) or not, thinking that maybe it simply wasn’t for me, but my semester abroad has changed my point of view. It has cemented my decision that, yes, I will pursue it, preferably sooner than later. Choosing the immediate course of your life, in this instance between pursuing a career or further studies, is by no means something to take lightly. That kind of decision—to take charge of your future education—is a powerful one. Not to mention that undertaking a student exchange gives you a track record that could be useful when pursuing a graduate study.

IISMA improved my soft skills a lot, too. One of the most prominent examples is independence. I found that living alone, especially abroad, could instil some doubts, especially if you’d never been away from home for a long period of time before. However, I learned that it didn’t have to be daunting. Sharing an apartment with fellow students certainly helped, and through this found family we learned the art of cohabitation as well: dividing house chores, managing expenses and groceries, and bonding over similar struggles of studying and living in a foreign country. Not only did it give me independenc, but skills such as making friends with people from totally different backgrounds, absorbing and assimilating new cultures, and communication also improved. It broadened my network, with the friends all over the world I’ve made along the way and the Indonesian Students Association (PPI) who lent their support during the course of my stay.

The third aspect is personal experiences, which cover a lot of grounds. First off, we can’t talk about student exchange without considering international exposure. These days, gaining international exposure is a plus and is especially useful when looking for opportunities such as further studies, fellowships, and jobs. IISMA is one such instance, for it gives the students a mobility program and a fully-funded scholarship to cover it. A prestigious scholarship is one way to leverage yourself among many candidates in any given field. It also opens many opportunities that might not have been there before, such as being invited as a speaker or mentor to various webinars and mentorship programs. The international exposure also makes it easier for you to use it to your advantage when applying for a post that specifically requires it, like in an international event.

Personal experiences also include the things you learned and unlearned along the way. The thing with scoring a student exchange, a full-ride at that, is one wake-up call that makes you realize you are actually more capable of more things than you’d thought you were. I learned a lot about myself thanks to the struggles I faced overseas: my upbringing, my true interests, my learning style, my career aspirations, my choice of friends, my choice of adventure, my life purpose; there are many sides of you that, previously hidden, come out only when you’re away from home. And to realize these things, to learn and unlearn perspectives of yourself, is a powerful form of personal growth.

To sum up, studying abroad is one hell of an experience. It opens the floodgates of new, exciting opportunities for you, and it gives you a chance to see the world (figuratively and literally), meet people who will leave a significant impact on your life from then onwards, learn deeply and meaningfully about yourself, and grow as a person.

When people say studying abroad changes your life, they don’t lie.

My name is Monica Audrey Widiany Kusteja Putri from batch 2018. I’m currently the last year of my undergraduate studies here the English Department, and in the fall of 2021, I was granted the most wonderful opportunity of studying abroad for a semester with the Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards, at The Pennsylvania State University.