There are very few moments in our life where our expectations and reality align. Isn’t it fascinating when this happens? Being a foreign student, I expected American universities to be more practical in their approach to education and I feel that my opinion turned out right. Rather than utilizing score sheets, I expected professors to evaluate a student’s performance based on assignments, exams, and in-class discussions. I also anticipated professors, friends, and colleagues to be extremely helpful, kind, and friendly, and do everything that they can to support one another. I thought college would provide me a diverse learning atmosphere in which I would be able to acquire and understand not only academics but also cultures, traditions, and values from other communities around the world.
I am happy that my expectations are the reality that I am living now. Having hands-on learning experience changed my perception of how it would be back home where most of the time our studies were focused on memorization and exams. Also, being part of diverse college environment, I got to make friends from all over the world, one of whom I will always remember is Christian Bass, a hardworking guy from Louisville, Kentucky whose motto in life was “you only live once, so do whatever you want with your life and do not regret it at all.” This interaction with him in college showed me how different we all are and how differently we perceive life, which for me is more important than any educational formula. Furthermore, interacting with professors is one of the best things that I have done in college. No matter how rational or illogical my queries were in class, each professor assisted me in finding the correct answers and making me a better learner every time.