ICS Latino USA

What was the highlight of your ICS in Latino USA?

It’s hard to narrow down just one highlight of my whole experience. My top 3: 

1. The incredible people I met, both American and from all over the world. 
2. I learned so much about the Latinx/Chicanx community that I would not have had the opportunity to learn through just travelling. 
3. The opportunity to travel to so many amazing places!

How did your language and intercultural skills improve?

For the most part, I was surrounded by people and I was in an environment where English was predominantly spoken. Although I did undertake 2 more semesters of Spanish classes which undoubtedly improved my Spanish speaking skills.

What skills have you learned in the past year that you believe will benefit your personal life and future career?

I’ve grown so much in this past year. The main skill I learned is self-sufficiency. I am a lot more independent now and as such, do not need to rely on others for most things in life. I was also able to break out of my shell and become more confident. 

How did university life in San Francisco differ to Australia? How did you adjust, if needed?

In my opinion, I felt like university life in the States was scaled back in regards to university life in Australia. It was a lot easier I believe but so enjoyable! 

How did you finance your ICS (e.g. scholarships, loans, budgeting)? Any advice?

The year before I left I worked like crazy, and saved up a lot! I also applied for the HELPS Loan which was added to my HECS, and I also applied for Centrelink assistance. The loan helped with covering 80-85% of my housing and board, and the Centrelink payment every fortnight helped with my weekly expenses whilst I was at college (which were limited unless I was going out). All the money I saved was used for my own travelling.

What’s an assumption about your country that you found to be untrue? 

A lot of people believe that the United States is relatively cheap, however, this is not the case. It is quite expensive and with the dollar down it made it a lot harder, as I lost a lot of money converting currency. 

What was your research project and why did you choose it? What were the findings? 

My research project was 'Is there an educational crisis among the Latinx population in California'. Within this, I focused on tertiary education.

I chose this topic because I found it incredibly interesting to find out that despite Latinx population accounting for the largest minority group in California, they have one of the lowest educational attainment rates, especially in regards to higher education, and so I wanted to know why. Through my research, I found that the Latinx population experience a lot of issues that make their educational experience more difficult. Some of these issues include a lack of representation and racism. Although my project could not provide a definitive conclusion due to my limited information, my research suggested that the Latinx population are experiencing an educational crisis in respect to higher education in California. 

If you were going through a tough time, what support did you receive or access? 

At the college I attended there were many services on campus that I could have utilised, such as the International Office and the Health Centre. However, what really helped me the most was surrounding myself with people I trusted and so that's what I did whenever I was experiencing a tough time.

If you could redo ICS, what are some things you would do differently?

1. I would join a club/group/sport from semester 1 (I left it until semester 2 and this was my biggest regret). 
2. I would advise managing your time well to ensure you have enough time to complete ICS assignments, but also ensure you are making the most of your ICS and experiencing the awesome place you are living in!

Why should International Studies students choose Latino USA for their ICS major?

1. You get to immerse yourself in the incredible Latinx culture without having the pressure of not being able to communicate with everyone if your Spanish skills are not advanced. 
2. You have the opportunity to visit some incredible places within the U.S.
3. You are so close to Central America and Latin America which means you can easily plan a trip. 
4. You get to meet so many amazing people from all over the world, as well from the States. 
5. It looks amazing on a resume. 
6. You will gain independence and confidence. 
7. You can experience college life, which could include joining a sorority or fraternity.
8. You'll make memories for life!

I landed in San Francisco airport on the 2nd of January 2018. This was my first ever solo trip. To say that I was nervous and scared was an understatement - I was terrified! After finally proceeding through the intimidating custom and immigration officials in the airport, I made my way to my Airbnb in San Francisco. I had planned to stay and explore San Francisco for 7 days.

In the next 7 days, I experienced many highs and lows. A lot of tears were shed. A lot of sleepless nights were endured. A lot of calls back home were made. But there was also a lot of great memories made that week. In the space of only 1 week, I had grown so much! I saw a lot of amazing places, such as the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz (the infamous island prison) and finally having the opportunity to watch my favourite basketball team play in their home stadium (and they won!). I also experienced a lot of awesome (and scary) things too such as my first earthquake! My first week in San Francisco taught me a lot, and it really was the perfect way to begin my year abroad!

The next few weeks were very exciting and interesting. I was introduced to my city, campus, and the realities of college life, i.e. the awesome dorm life (note the sarcasm). It’s unfortunately not like how it’s portrayed to be in shows and movies! I opted to share an apartment style dorm (minus a kitchen) with 4 other girls. This wasn’t one of my greatest ideas! After finalising my check-in process on the first day, and taking about 30 minutes to find my room and drag all my luggage with me, I was absolutely shocked to find out that my room consisted of only a bed frame, plastic mattress, desk, chair and closet. That was it! I didn’t really know what I intended to expect, but it certainly was more than that. At least for exchange/international students, who cannot be expected to bring their whole bedroom across the world with them! After recomposing myself, I quickly unpacked what I could and made my way to the closest Target to buy the necessities.

This certainly was a big wake up call, reminding me that I really was on my own. But at the same time, I was glad it happened! It allowed me to be conscious and take action right away, and ever since the first day, I have always ensured that I am organised and prepared!

It's true what they say. The first couple of weeks are really trying times for an exchange student. But it’s within these weeks that will build you up for the rest of your year abroad. Trust me on that!

One of the great things that you can do on your year abroad is to explore and travel to some really awesome places. I have had some amazing opportunities to do so, and some of these included my Spring Break Vacation.  My sister decided to visit me and explore some more parts of the US, so we spent a total of three weeks (on and off due to my classes), exploring the south and west coast of the US. Due to the way my classes lined up, in total, I had 10 full days off for my Spring Break. We decided to visit three cities in Texas and San Diego, California.

We began the Spring Break week in Dallas, Texas, and spent two nights there. We spent the first couple of days eating a whole lot of barbeque, visiting the JFK Museum, and exploring the most interesting town I have ever visited, Fort Worth, where we watched our first Rodeo. After our short but sweet time in Dallas, we continued on to San Antonio, which we classified as little Mexico. It was so beautiful and by far my favourite city in Texas. We spent our days walking around the city, exploring the many different missions, such as the famous Alamo, eating a lot of delicious Mexican food, and enjoying the beauty of the Riverwalk. I was also gifted by my parents another NBA experience in San Antonio for my upcoming birthday, which, despite the fact we lost, was still an incredible experience.

After San Antonio, we made our way to Austin. This city was a really cool and relaxed place to be. It was filled with so many great and interesting places to eat and had an awesome nightlife. Unfortunately, I could not explore a lot of Austin’s attractions as I was not yet 21, but it just gave me an excuse to return (like I really needed one!). After our Texas adventure, my sister and I flew over to San Diego, California. The last couple of days of my Spring Break adventure were filled with visiting the San Diego Safari Park, visiting the many beautiful beaches and exploring the many interesting neighbourhoods in the city.

After our great trip, reality set in, and I had to return to Sacramento for classes.

I was chosen to complete my In-Country Study in Sacramento, California, and I am forever grateful for this. California is truly remarkable. From all the travels I have done thus far throughout the United States, I can safely say that nowhere was more fascinating and beautiful as California. It has everything you could ever want to experience. Beautiful oceans and beaches, great city life, desert and amazing vineyard regions.

I’m currently at my halfway mark in my In-Country journey and have been very fortunate to visit so many awesome places that California has to offer. These have included Sacramento, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Santa Cruz, San Jose, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and San Diego. It’s so hard to choose a favourite as each place was so different from the next, however, the two that truly stood out to me were Lake Tahoe and Los Angeles.

Lake Tahoe was unlike anything I had ever visited before. It was certainly the most beautiful place I have ever visited. It had incredible mountains that surrounded a stunning lake. I was very fortunate to visit at a time when there was still snow that decorated the area from the winter, which made the experience that more magical.

Los Angeles was everything you could ever hope for. It truly embodies everything you see in T.V. and film. I loved every minute I was there. I visited so many fascinating places within Los Angeles, but by far, my favourite place was Venice Beach. The vibe here was just so cool and relaxed. The beach was amazing, there were so many great shops on the boardwalks, music and dancing happening everywhere, people working out on the famous Muscle Beach (an outdoor gym), it was just incredible. I wish I could have stayed here longer!

Before my in-country study, I would describe myself as someone who was fairly shy and did not encompass a lot of self-confidence. This was one of the major reasons why I wanted to complete this in-country study year, to challenge myself and build on my confidence. And this has certainly been the case, because I have been consistently challenged since departing from Australia.

From the beginning I have faced many obstacles. Despite the circumstance of the obstacles, the hardest thing about them was the fact that I had to deal with them on my own. I didn’t have my family or friends to depend on or help me. As such I had to learn very quickly that I could only rely on myself. With this, I had no choice but to become more confident within myself in order to deal with whatever decided to come my way. I guess I was lucky in that I had to deal with some unexpected obstacles in the beginning of the year, which built on my confidence.

This added confidence helped with making great friends, being more outspoken within and outside the classrooms, being more adventurous and taking more risks. Further to this, I felt more confident, I was not afraid to ask for help, which made things a lot of easier and provided me with more opportunities that I probably would not have been exposed to if I stayed quiet.

I’m at my eight-month mark and I cannot say that I have reached my peak and no longer have room to grow. I am still learning and growing. My next and final semester begins next week and I am certainly nervous and stressed, mainly because most of the friends I made last semester were exchange students who were only in the States for one semester. I feel like I have to start again, however, with all my experience and everything that I have accomplished thus far, I am confident it will easier this time round.

This was a really challenging thing I needed to work out when planning my ICS. I stress very easily so in order to deal with that, I like to plan everything. Unfortunately, when it came to preparing for my ICS, there was only so much I could prepare for ahead of time. With most things, I had to adapt and work through along the way.

In terms of my finances, I was able to plan a little. I knew I wanted to travel as much as I could whilst I was away, so I needed a lot of $$$. I worked like crazy the whole year before I left, saving as much as I could. But I still knew that I needed more. Unfortunately, I was in the position where I could not get any financial support from my family so I really need to work out a plan early on.

Thankfully UTS introduced us to HELPS loan. There were a few loan amounts that were available. You could apply for a maximum of two loans in your life time and each loan could be applied for a minimum of 6 months and 1 day a part. This was extremely helpful as I was about to receive a loan of around twelve thousand dollars for my year abroad which covered about 90% of my board and meal plan.

In addition to this I was eligible to receive Centrelink assistance as I was studying overseas. This money became my spending money that I used throughout each semester. It's important to note that for me, because I lived on campus and was required to have a meal plan, I did not spend a lot throughout the semesters. My money was mainly spent on travelling and social activities.

I could not really budget my money until I arrived in the US and began adjusting to my new routine. However planning to apply for the HELPS loan and Centrelink assistance was needed to be done pre-departure. So I would recommend that you do all the research you can before you leave, to determine what applies to you, and if you are planning on travelling (which most do), be sure to factor that in EARLY on!

College life is full of non-stop activities and events! In the beginning of each semester, all different types of clubs, sports, sororities and fraternities fill the whole campus with their stands for the first two weeks. You have the opportunity to browse all the great groups, and find and join something that is either relatable or that is completely out of your comfort zone! For me, that was rugby! All these clubs give you an incredibly easy way to meet new people, who more often than not share the same likes and dislikes as you. These clubs put together all sorts of events, meetups and practice sessions weekly, so it’s highly unlikely you will find yourself bored!

Even without joining any clubs or groups, college is always hosting all types of events, both educational and recreational. Almost every day there is something to attend. From all sorts of sports games, such as football and basketball, to important guest speakers educating us some of the contemporary issues facing our current society and even concerts by famous artists!

In my final semester, I wanted to challenge myself further and meet more people. So I decided to join the Women's Rugby team. Luckily for me, it was a sports team that required no experience. Despite the challenging nature of the sport and a few small injuries, it has been one of the best decisions I have made in my year abroad. I have met some incredibly strong and fascinating women, and have developed a love for a sport I did not know much about before coming to the States. I am already looking for a team to join when I return to Sydney!

Joining the rugby club has been a really great experience, and I really encourage everyone to ensure they get involved on campus. It will really enhance your college experience!

When I began my year abroad, my Spanish skills were not advanced. I could somewhat read and understand basic sentences, but struggled to actually converse. My goal for my year abroad was to improve my Spanish skills.

I was incredibly blessed to have received fantastic Spanish professors this year. They have really helped me in understanding a lot of the reasons why certain things are the way they are within the Spanish language. I’ve also gained a lot of knowledge on the different cultures from Spain and some Latin American countries. 

However, I feel as though I still have not significantly improved my conversational skills. Although I know a great deal of this, has to do with my own responsibility in practicing every day. My location also contributed tremendously. Although Sacramento is an incredibly diverse city, with many Spanish speakers, I was not very exposed to the Spanish language outside of my classes. There has been no time where I needed to use Spanish. This was the only disadvantage of my year abroad in the United States. 

When I came across the Latino USA major, I was so excited. It felt like this major was created just for me! Anyone who knows me, knows how much I, firstly loved and aspired to live in the United States, and secondly, had a fascination and love for the Hispanic culture, from the traditions to the food, as well as the incredible people! So when the day came and I found out I had received my first choice for my major, I was over the moon! I had the ability to travel to one of my favourite countries, live in it for 12 months, and be surrounded by the Hispanic culture. It truly was a dream come true.

One of the main things that drew me to this major was the language. It had been a goal of mine for many years to learn Spanish, however with work, school and other commitments, I had no time. The ability to combine Spanish classes with my professional degree was really perfect for me! I’m definitely far from fluent, however, I know so much than I did a few years ago! It has really motivated to continue on with Spanish classes even though I have finished this part of my degree.