On Being International

I have studied abroad all my life, and not only abroad from the United States but abroad from Kazakhstan. That’s right, I am from the land of Borat; although to tell you honestly he isn’t as impressive as I am in terms of actually being from Kazakhstan. For one thing, I really am from there! I speak the language, which if you didn’t know is Kazakh and Russian, and I hold its citizenship. What that means in terms of William and Mary is that I am an international student here. I get more complicated that though, because I don’t actually have an international “home” address! My mom currently lives in New York City, allowing me all the amenities of a somewhat a typical American life, while allotting me the luxury of being foreign.

You might ask why I chose to come to William and Mary of all schools known worldwide. Well the thing about my education is that it has always been through the American school system, so naturally I wanted to go to America for college. I learned about William and Mary through a program called Presidential Classroom, which I participated in the summer before senior year. We traveled to a few Virginia universities and some in Washington D.C., but William and Mary had struck a note with me. When I first arrived on campus it was beautiful, and the weather was just right for touring the campus. I fell in love with the old buildings, the small campus and the Sunken Gardens.

When I did end up applying I found out that William and Mary is actually a very highly accredited academic institution (or they are all really smart!) and that I might not get accepted. Sitting at home (in Italy, where I was currently residing) waiting for the mail was beyond stressful, until one day I got an email. The email was from William and Mary and they had taken the liberty to inform me that I had gotten accepted even though my letter hadn’t arrived yet. I was beyond ecstatic; but the best part was yet to come because a few months after I got it my mom told me that she was getting a new job, in New York City! All in all, I’d say that my life turned out pretty well, considering I get the best of both worlds (or is it more than two?)

Sabina Abdullayeva
Class of 2011