Tulisan ini ditulis oleh salah satu alumni kita, Gabriella Lestari dan dipublikasikan di indonesiamengglobal.com (LINK).
Profil alumni kita: Gabriella memulai pendidikan tingginya di Green River Community College yang kemudian transfer ke University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), California untuk menyelesaikan sarjananya. Setelah menjadi visiting researcher 6 bulan di Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, US beliau melanjutkan studi S2 nya di KAUST tepatnya di Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE). Sekarang Gabriella sedang menempuh studi doktoral di University of Toronto.
Berikut kisahnya…
It has been almost nine years since I first packed my life into two check-in luggage and traveled the world on the ongoing quest to further my education. Three degrees and five cities later, people are still most surprised when I mention that I spent two years in the Middle East – in Saudi Arabia, nonetheless. It will take me a thousand and one nights to share everything I experienced and learned in a country that is also known as “The Kingdom”. But for today, let’s begin our journey with five tales.
1. Sometimes, great adventures start with a leap of faith.
Let’s be honest, Saudi Arabia is not commonly known as a destination for higher education. [Baca lebih lanjut di indonesiamengglobal.com]
2. Be grateful, especially for the little things.
Growing up in Jakarta and completing my undergraduate education in the United States, I often take simple things for granted. [Baca lebih lanjut di indonesiamengglobal.com]
3. Live in the moment and cherish it.
Speaking of being grateful, even more than ever, I learned to live and cherish every moment. If you ask someone who has spent time in the Middle East about what they have missed the most from their time there, I bet most people would say that it’s the friendships they made. Because almost everyone is so far from their family, your classmates and friends are your family. They come from all over the world and grew up in different culture, but soon you will find that humankind from different countries still has a lot in common. It is so great to be able to have friends from all over the world. [Baca lebih lanjut di indonesiamengglobal.com]
4. Happiness is an attitude.
In addition to being grateful, another must-have attitude is positive thinking. You will find that most things in the Middle East move at a slower pace (especially during Ramadan), and you will hear a lot of “Insha Allah”s (God Willing) as an answer when you ask someone whether they can do something for you. It could be very frustrating when you are trying to get something done, but it will definitely teach you the lesson of patience and persistence, all while respecting the local culture, of course! [Baca lebih lanjut di indonesiamengglobal.com]
5. Eyes on the prize!
After so much work of simply trying to survive, it is easy to let the days, weeks, and months pass by. Especially with the subtle change in season, and the great friendships you have now made, before you knew it, suddenly a year has passed since you arrived. It is important to have goals and to remember why you are there in the first place. To get your education! As much as the education outside of the classroom is important, you still need that piece of paper which legitimizes the work you have done to graduate. [Baca lebih lanjut di indonesiamengglobal.com]
If you happen to be thinking about going to the Middle East, I recommend you to go with an open mind and a sense of adventure. If you want to learn more about my almamater in particular, you can check out the website made by the current students and alumni at www.kaustina.org.
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