Adhishree Viti

My study abroad experience in London is truly unforgettable. It changed my academic, professional and personal life. In terms of academics, the program there offered great teachers from King’s College and Oxford University for our Computer Science courses who were excellent at explaining difficult concepts. I also developed an interest in history, museums and various cultures because of how diverse the city was, and because of the various trips that the program took us on. In terms of my professional life, I got to tour big tech companies and network with so many people in not just tech fields but also finance and marketing. Specifically, I got access to the women in tech organizations there and got to meet brilliant, hardworking women from across the globe who gave me such good advice. And finally, in terms of my personal life, it made me much more outgoing, curious and fearless. I developed my conversation skills a lot as I would talk to locals or make new friends while traveling to other European cities. On top of exploring London, I got the chance to go to Paris, Rome, Prague and Edinburgh. Covering 5 countries in just one semester made me fall in love with traveling again and meeting people from various backgrounds taught me so much more about the world that I probably would not have learned about had I stayed in Syracuse.

I was surprised by how much my life would change after this experience. I had always thought I was quite introverted and didn’t really enjoy talking to big groups. But after going there, I became completely different. I would start conversations with random people at cafes, go explore unhidden gems in the city, spend hours alone at the art and history museums and spend time at each installation reading the descriptions. It reignited my passion for traveling and made me a much more confident and fearless person.

I am thinking of becoming a global ambassador for Syracuse Abroad and hoping to encourage as many people as possible to do study abroad at least once in their college life. For my further plans, studying in London has inspired me to work and live in the UK in my 20s so I have been actively applying for jobs there.

Receiving the award was quite helpful as I was able to use the money and put it towards my London program fee which was a high amount, especially when compared to how much I would have paid if I had stayed on campus. It lowered the burden on me and I was able to use my saved up money for my traveling experiences.

This experience allowed me to take eye opening humanities and social studies courses which I probably would not have had the chance to take had I stayed on campus. For example, I took a class called Who’s Collecting Who which is a class about the importance and intricacies of collections. We got the chance to visit so many museums, warehouses and other places of collection that I never would have gone on my own. Another class I took was called Multiculturalism in London where we learned about the infusion of so many cultures in the city and also went to museums and met community leaders to hear their thoughts. Both these classes developed my interest in social issues and museums so much that now I actively go to museums in every city I travel to and try to learn about their culture and history. I have always been focused mostly on STEM subjects so London truly changed me as a person as I went from avoiding museums to finding less known museums and going out of my way to talk to local people.
In addition to the academic impacts, the school took us to Google’s office in London which was a dream come true. I met with employees there and had a chance to connect with them. My friends and I would also go to restaurants/cafes near the finance district because all the people after work would be there for food and drinks and they were always open to socialize so it was a great way to hear about different career journeys and get career tips. I also went to Women in Tech networking events there and met so many amazing women across all tech fields!