Tag: study in istanbul

  • Once Upon a Time in Anatolia

    Once Upon a Time in Anatolia

    When students think of what you would like to do for the summer, what comes to mind? Go to the beach, sleep in late, be grateful that you don’t have to attend summer and intercession classes or start a new workout routine.

    For the past two of my summers, the answer has always been for this writer: “I want to go someplace I’ve never been before.”

    Last summer, I attended the UNO-Japan program in Kyoto to study at the Doshisha University. The Doshisha University offered many courses in Japanese language, art, film, photography and Honors options for most courses. As part of the program, my fellow students and I were able to see the key sights of Kyoto like the Nijo-jo (Nijo Castle). I also had the chance to visit South Korea after the program.

    This summer I decided that I wanted to see Turkey, especially since I had decided to study there for the fall semester, which has now extended into a full academic year.

    View from the top of Yeditepe’s law building.

    Turkey is rather tritely known as the place where East meets West. This little cliché is largely true in the culture capital of Istanbul, the largest city in Europe and the only city in the world to geographically span two continents.

    Istanbul is the city I will call home for the next year while I am on this study abroad program, particularly the Yeditepe University. Yeditepe is Turkish for “seven hills”.

    Istanbul offers some of the most historic sites in the world including the 400 year-old Sultanahmet (better known as the Blue Mosque), the almost 600 year-old Topkapı Palace and the 550 year-old Grand Bazaar that boasts over 3,000 shops with an untold diversity of wares.

    But this city is not only about the ancient. Istanbul is an industrial city with the entire gamut of modern conveniences at its disposal with malls and nightlife (whose center on the European side is Taksim) and entertainment galore.

    I arrived in Turkey three months before my program began to get a feel of the country, particularly the people. In the course of my stay, I have visited the capital, Ankara, another historical town called Bursa in the rural northeast in a village called Hemşin.

    Despite seeing the burial place of Kemal Atatürk, someone that I can only very loosely describe as Turkey’s version of George Washington, and vast tea farms in a valley, the most impressive part of Turkey is the people.

    Hospitality is taken to levels that the South could learn from and many of the citizens are inspiring in their own right.

    I met a group of students through Couch Surfing in Ankara that started their own business in search engine optimization. I also met a man in Hemşin that was an environmental crusader. His specialty was fighting the government’s ambitious damming projects that threatened the tea-making livelihood of many of the villagers in the area.

    Turkey is very much a country where many things are happening, and quickly. I have learned these things, and more, in little less than three months with over ten more months to go.

    The purpose of this article will hopefully spark a series of essays to appear in “Driftwood” about studying abroad from not only myself but also other students that have completed programs abroad.

    These informative essays will help educate new and current UNO students about what there is to gain by traveling and studying abroad from a summer to a semester to possibly an entire year.

    I will be giving you my perspective from Turkey, complete with essays on the many places to visit and opinions on the culture and the politics.

    If you would like to study abroad, please email the Division of International Education at isp@uno.edu or drop by their office inside the Education Building, office 120, for more information.

    If you have any questions about studying abroad or traveling in Turkey, feel free to contact me at jleblue@uno.edu.

    Photo courtesy of Brodie LeBlue/Driftwood.

    via Once Upon a Time in Anatolia.

  • US goes off students’ radar as rupee slides against dollar

    US goes off students’ radar as rupee slides against dollar

    CHANDIGARH: Amandeep Singh, who has just completed his engineering from a private college in Landran, was all set to seek admission in US for his masters. Following the slide in rupee value vis-a-vis the dollar, his destination has changed to China. Though China and Turkey are the new destinations which have caught the attention of students, Canada, New Zealand and Australia are still the favourites.

    Aman Manchanda, an overseas education consultant based in the city said, “The dollar rate has increased in these countries too. But students have lost their craze for the US with slump in market there and difficulty in obtaining permanent residency (PR). In Canada, Australia and New Zealand PR comes after a year.” Thus instead of looking for greener pastures in the US, those interested in an offshore education tag are either looking for domestic market or countries which are offering incentives like tuition fee waiver and an early PR. Dr Vishal, orthopedic surgeon in PGI, said, “For practicing medicine in the US one needs to clear an entrance exam which used to cost some Rs 3.5 lakh. But with the rupee sliding down, the cost would now rise to Rs 5 -6 lakh. Thus it’s not feasible anymore and it seems that there are better options back home after completion of MD/MS.”

    For those coming from north India, including Chandigarh and Punjab, Canada has not lost its sheen. Akriti Sharma, a pass out from MCM College, said, “The best part about Canada is that the PR comes within a year. Plus work permit can be attained and I have relatives there for support too, unlike in Singapore where foreign students cannot get employment at all.” Turkey is offering a wide range of scholarships to woo students. “Europe and US are almost out of reach for students. Whereas Turkey taking advantage of the rupee fall has started offering 75% waiver in tuition fees for Indian students. This is an emerging destination and we are giving this as an option to those who want a foreign tag,” said Manoj Kalra, a Panchkula-based immigration consultant.

    Changing Tack

    With the sliding rupee value, my chances of studying abroad seem bleak now. I hope by the time I graduate, this crisis ends

    Nakshita Arora | BA-II, MCM-DAV College

    Initially, I had planned on getting a loan to fund my education abroad and pay it off myself without putting pressure on my parents. But now this too seems like a tough call

    Kalika Mehra | Ist year NIFD Mohali

    My plans of studying abroad may not work out now but it has made me more committed to getting into the best university in India

    Melvin Thomas | IIIrd year PEC

    I have already started working on finding government-sponsored scholarships for my further studies abroad as it has become unthinkable to pay all of the fee without taking help

    Debsourab Ghosh | Ist year DAV-10

    via US goes off students’ radar as rupee slides against dollar – The Times of India.

  • Istanbul Adventures VII: Redefining Home

    Istanbul Adventures VII: Redefining Home

    By Kat Russell

    View of Sultanahmet, Istanbul’s historical district, from a ferry crossing the Boshphorus. Istanbul is the only city in the world that resides in two continents – Asia and Europe. Photo Credit: Kat Russell / Daily Sundial

    I have lived in Los Angeles my entire life, but it has never felt like my home. I’ve never really felt like I belonged here or like I was meant to be here. I have always felt a little lost or out of place. In fact, the only times that I have ever really felt at home were when I was traveling.

    I’m not sure how to explain it, but I have always been more comfortable in a city I don’t know. I love stepping off a plane, being met with a language I don’t speak, and having to figure out where I am and where I am going. There’s something about the unfamiliar that I find soothing and exciting.

    I have been fortunate enough during my lifetime to have had many opportunities to travel all over the world – from backpacking across Europe to wandering through Asia to exploring Central America. Through all my travels, there has been this sense of searching for a place to call my home.

    At one point in time, I thought I had found my home in Bali, Indonesia. I had fallen in love with its tiny villages, its friendly people, its exotic tropical setting, its fascinating culture and its simple way of life. But the more I traveled, the more I knew that, as much as I loved Bali, it was not going to be my home – I still had that search ahead of me.

    Last summer, when the opportunity to study in Istanbul presented itself I jumped on it. I had never studied abroad, nor been to any countries in that part of the world, and the thought of doing so excited me. I knew nothing of where I was going, I knew nothing of the people I would encounter or of their culture, and I was eager to explore and experience a place that was entirely different from all the other places I had visited.

    This concept of “searching for home” presented itself to me in a very real way while I was in Istanbul. Before my travels began, I was sure that Istanbul was going to be nothing more than a new experience for me – I was not going to find my home there. When I got to Istanbul, I was confronted with the task of redefining my ideas of what home meant to me.

    It’s hard for me to find the words to describe what I found during my time in Istanbul. The easiest way for me to say it is that I found my home – much to my surprise. My love for the city caught me off guard – in fact, it shocked me – and I knew that Istanbul was the place where I wanted to live my life.

    When I returned to Los Angeles, my family and my friends were anxious to hear of my adventures and of what I had learned. They were equally surprised and concerned when they learned of my intentions to move to Istanbul as soon as the opportunity arose. They questioned me extensively as to what my plans, my reasons and my motives were. I grew frustrated as I found that I could not give them a satisfactory answer – all I could say was I had never felt so at peace as I did in Istanbul and my heart had never felt so full.

    Since I’ve come back from Istanbul, I have struggled to define what it is I found there that left me feeling so certain I have finally found my home. What is it I love so much? The simple answer is I love everything about Istanbul. I love starting my day listening to the morning call to prayer. I love the hustle and bustle of the city. I love spending my evenings on the banks of the Bosphorus drinking tea with the locals. I love the city itself with its crowded streets, its cobblestone roads, its constant chorus of honking horns and endless chatter. Most of all, I love that Istanbul opened my eyes, changed my perception, and opened my heart to new possibilities.

    I relate to the cliché “home is where the heart is.” Before Istanbul, that saying meant to me that home is where your friends and family are. Since coming back from Istanbul, my idea of home has changed. Today, home is where my heart feels happy and full.

    via Istanbul Adventures VII: Redefining Home | Daily Sundial.