EVA (1st year)

“I had decided rather early on in high school that I would like to study International Studies. I was sure of my regional choice when applying for this program, but struggled to decide between Mandarin and Korean. Something that influenced my language choice decision was my trip to Korea in 2019. I had already been interested in K-Pop and Korean culture, but that interest was solidified by my experiences while traveling in Korea. So when it came to choosing my language, in addition to the region last semester, I had to think of moments during my travel in which I felt incredibly at home in Seoul, even though it was my first time there. That feeling of being connected to a place without actually having lived and grown up there was very special to me. While making my choice, I had to think back to those moments that led me to the decision to study Korean instead of Mandarin, which is widely considered to be the more reasonable choice. I believe that this was an example of how you have to listen to your gut feeling as well when it comes to making decisions about your future, aside from purely logical reasons. I hope that others can connect to this realization and maybe benefit from my experience. Also, I am looking forward to the start of this semester and my first ever Korean class!” (Eva, 1st year, Nieuwerkerk)