“It’s really refreshing,” said Livia Hauser, a 21-year-old international student from Switzerland. “The people here, everyone is so welcoming and nice to you,” said Hauser. Her life back in Switzerland is very different than her current life as a Brookdale student.
“We don’t really like small talk,” Hauser said, discussing differences.
“You start to appreciate the small things,” Hauser said. She didn’t expect American life to be that different. It is silly things that she misses the most: “Tap water, proper sidewalks, the showers, but especially our public transportation.”
Even though there are a lot of stereotypes about Americans, Hauser wanted to see for herself. “It’s interesting what you hear about living here and what is actually true.”
Hauser found it especially interesting how little most people know about European countries and the people who live there.
“I was often asked if it’s weird to drive on the right side of the road, but everyone in Europe drives on the right side. Except the UK, no one drives on the left in Europe,” Hauser said. Many people also confuse Switzerland with Sweden, creating a lot of confusion when meeting new people.
But Hauser said she is really enjoying her time in the US. Even though she was not sure if New Jersey would be the right choice, she does not regret coming here. The people are a lot different than they are in Switzerland,” she said, noting that she welcomes the differences.
“I just take it as it comes, go with the flow,” she said. Hauser said she is grateful that she gets to experience a different culture.
“I needed to figure out what to do with my life,” Hauser said. Her decision to go and travel was easy but deciding on what to do abroad wasn’t. “It was really hard to find something that really fits me,” she said. But after learning about the study abroad program, she knew this was it.
Australia, Ireland, and Japan were all options, but in the end she decided to come to the United States. The program works together with a lot of different colleges, but the proximity to New York made it easy to decide on New Jersey.
“I love the campus. It’s so green, and there is always something going on,” Hauser said, being happy about her decision. Even though it is a lot different than home, it’s also exactly how she imagined it. “I wanted to meet new people, experience a different culture, improve my English and experience college life, and I did all of that.”
“I always look forward to Bingo,” said Hauser. The amounts of events at Brookdale are some of the things she really appreciates, bingo being her favorite. “We don’t really have this at universities back home.”
“If I drive three hours in Switzerland, I’m in another country. If I drive three hours here, I’d probably still be in New Jersey,” Hauser said. She struggles with how far away everything is here. Without a car, she said, it is hard to get around.
In Switzerland, everything is walkable, and most people use public transportation instead of using their cars. “It was kind of a culture shock,” Hauser said. But besides that, she really enjoys her life in the United States, trying new things and meeting a lot of new people.
“It is hard to compare it,” Hauser said. Not only was her life in Switzerland different from now, but the country also works differently than the United States.
“I love being in the city; it’s my favorite thing to do,” Hauser said. Being able to experience the city through different seasons and not only for a short amount of time like a tourist would, she enjoys discovering hidden places and trying different things there.
“I didn’t think it would be this hard,” Hauser said. Even though she meets a lot of new people, it is hard for her to make actual friends. Being part of different clubs is what helps her with that; with the amount of clubs Brookdale has, there is something for everyone. For Hauser it’s the environmental club that she always looks forward to.
To figure out what to study when she returns home, Hauser is taking intro courses in law, English, marketing, and hospitality management. “I figured out marketing is boring,” said Hauser. Instead she found her passion for hospitality management. “I’m pretty sure that I will study it next year at university.”
Only staying for one semester, Hauser is flying back home just a few days before Christmas. She decided to only do one semester abroad, so she still has enough time to apply to universities in Switzerland and figure everything out before her studies start. She is sad about leaving, sure she will miss it here, but looks forward to seeing her loved ones and being back home again.
Looking back, she would recommend studying abroad to everyone. “I was always really independent, but this experience still helped me to improve it,” she said. Going abroad is an experience she will never forget, and it’s an experience she recommends. “If you can see yourself doing it, do it,” says Hauser.
There are a lot of options for students to experience life abroad. The agency that helped Hauser to organize everything also helps people with doing work and travel, au pair work or a lot of other things. The American Institute for Foreign Studies has been working together with Brookdale for a long time, giving students from all over the world the opportunity to come here.