No other way to say this. I'm graduating a year early from Syracuse and going back to London for grad school. I fell in love with London when I was there, and I have to go back. I'm one of thirty five students in the Master of Digital Marketing program at Hult International Business School in London. (I applied without telling anyone in September and completed all the interviews while I was in London. I found out that I was accepted a few weeks ago, but I wanted to wait until I got back to Syracuse to make sure my early graduation was official before I told everyone. But now it's official, so I might as well share.) What's really cool is that after nine months in London, I will then rotate to Hult's campus in Shanghai for six weeks, and then Dubai for six weeks. I realize that I'll be missing out on a few things by not being at Syracuse for a fourth year, but I think that I'll gain so much more from a new experience.
I am very excited about the classes offered in my program because they relate specifically to the career I want to have. There are courses in International Marketing, Customer Service & Retention Online, Digital Publishing and Social Media Marketing; among many others. The program was just introduced last year, so it is very young and modern. However, I'll definitely be the youngest person in the program, with most of the other students being more than a few years older than me. It will certainly be a change from campus, and even very different from just doing an undergraduate semester in London, but I'm very eager to go.
I'm going to miss Syracuse an incredible amount, but I think that I'll have a greater appreciation for my short time there than most people. Now that I know that this semester is my last one, I plan on enjoying it as much as possible. I never thought I would get into Hult, so I wasn't ever planning on graduating early until I found out that I actually got in. Luckily, I was able to just do some shuffling with my advisor; we found that if I dropped two of my majors and my minor that I'd be able to graduate a full year early...sounds like a fair trade to me. (I don't really want to work in finance anyway...why was I majoring in it again?) Now that this opportunity has presented itself, I can't possibly turn it down. It will be a big change, but I'm so excited that I'm already counting down the days.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Blogging about South Africa for USA Today!
Hey guys! It's a really exciting day for me. A few weeks ago I started talking with the folks at USA Today, and eventually it led to an offer to be a guest blogger for them. I was given the ability to choose any topic I wanted to write about, and my obvious first choice was my experience in South Africa. Well, the blog just went live, and I would love for you all to head over there and read it. (And if you like me, look at the upper right corner of the post where it says "Suzie Someone and 10 others like this" and just hit 'like'...it's not that hard.) (And if you really like me, comment directly on that post - the more activity that post gets, the more likely they are to ask me to write more.)
So head on over to the USA Today College Blog and read what I have to say, and then click 'like' in the upper right corner.
So head on over to the USA Today College Blog and read what I have to say, and then click 'like' in the upper right corner.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Top 10 Travel Moments of 2010
It seems appropriate to make one of these lists that everyone else is writing for their blogs. 2010 was such an incredible year for me. I finally broke free from North America and explored foreign countries both on my own and with my friends. I learned so many lessons this year from my ventures. With that said, let's journey back.
10) Moving into my flat
My first apartment was a flat. I think that's pretty wicked.
9) Seeing The Saturdays in concert in London
The Saturdays are an extremely popular girl band in London, and I was lucky enough to be able to see them perform in a really small space. To top it off, I was reunited with Vince and Janelle, two of my favorite people I lived with in South Africa.
8) Bungy jumping from the world's highest bungy bridge
Not as cool as skydiving, but something I've always wanted to do. For those few seconds, I was just....extremely happy.
7) Learning about the Belfast peace walls
It is hard to imagine a modern city going through the hardships that Belfast has endured in the past decade. The walls tell a real story, and I loved that I was able to visit them for my independent study project during the Ireland seminar I went on.
6) Gaining experience from an international internship
It was really a huge learning experience for me to finally be able to put into action the things I learn at school. Even though my employment was brief, it really solidified my career plans now that I've actually been able to try a few things out.
5) Experiencing the 2010 World Cup
I was never much of a soccer fan before this year. That quickly changed. Out of the 64 matches, I think I missed watching just two of them. Attending the first match at the new stadium in Cape Town was incredible.
4) Getting held at the South Africa/Mozambique border because I was an illegal immigrant
In the heat of this moment, I was petrified. We couldn't speak the language; they were clearly just trying to milk us for money, our bus abandoned us and we had a flight to catch or we would be stuck for a very long time. At least I can add "illegal immigrant" to my resume.
3) Skydiving for the first time
It won't be my last time, though. There is no way to describe the feeling from jumping out of a plane. The view on the way down was beautiful; two oceans and a mountain range. I'm hooked.
2) Getting to know my class
The children that I met at Christian David Primary School changed my life forever. They are like no people I had ever met; they were so happy despite some pretty dismal conditions around them. Some of my favorite experiences this summer were just little moments in class where a kid finally learned how to spell a certain word or understood a math problem.
1) A perfect Fall break
You just can't top this. I visited three countries I've always wanted to go to in just one week. I also had an entire day to explore a Disney park that I'd never been to, and as a HUGE Disney geek I was just pumped. Paris was something out of a movie; Milan was an ideal shopping city; and Athens was beautiful. This was easily one of the best weeks of my life.
After writing this, I have to say that 2010 was the best year of my life, so far. If 2011 is even half as awesome, I'll be thrilled.
10) Moving into my flat
My first apartment was a flat. I think that's pretty wicked.
9) Seeing The Saturdays in concert in London
The Saturdays are an extremely popular girl band in London, and I was lucky enough to be able to see them perform in a really small space. To top it off, I was reunited with Vince and Janelle, two of my favorite people I lived with in South Africa.
8) Bungy jumping from the world's highest bungy bridge
Not as cool as skydiving, but something I've always wanted to do. For those few seconds, I was just....extremely happy.
7) Learning about the Belfast peace walls
It is hard to imagine a modern city going through the hardships that Belfast has endured in the past decade. The walls tell a real story, and I loved that I was able to visit them for my independent study project during the Ireland seminar I went on.
6) Gaining experience from an international internship
It was really a huge learning experience for me to finally be able to put into action the things I learn at school. Even though my employment was brief, it really solidified my career plans now that I've actually been able to try a few things out.
5) Experiencing the 2010 World Cup
I was never much of a soccer fan before this year. That quickly changed. Out of the 64 matches, I think I missed watching just two of them. Attending the first match at the new stadium in Cape Town was incredible.
4) Getting held at the South Africa/Mozambique border because I was an illegal immigrant
In the heat of this moment, I was petrified. We couldn't speak the language; they were clearly just trying to milk us for money, our bus abandoned us and we had a flight to catch or we would be stuck for a very long time. At least I can add "illegal immigrant" to my resume.
3) Skydiving for the first time
It won't be my last time, though. There is no way to describe the feeling from jumping out of a plane. The view on the way down was beautiful; two oceans and a mountain range. I'm hooked.
2) Getting to know my class
The children that I met at Christian David Primary School changed my life forever. They are like no people I had ever met; they were so happy despite some pretty dismal conditions around them. Some of my favorite experiences this summer were just little moments in class where a kid finally learned how to spell a certain word or understood a math problem.
1) A perfect Fall break
You just can't top this. I visited three countries I've always wanted to go to in just one week. I also had an entire day to explore a Disney park that I'd never been to, and as a HUGE Disney geek I was just pumped. Paris was something out of a movie; Milan was an ideal shopping city; and Athens was beautiful. This was easily one of the best weeks of my life.
After writing this, I have to say that 2010 was the best year of my life, so far. If 2011 is even half as awesome, I'll be thrilled.
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