Author: ellenbassam

It’s been a while since I last posted and a while since I returned from the US. I left this time for a reason, to give me time to reflect. Coming back from the US at first was quite a strange experience, I felt in the first few weeks quite lost and not sure what to do with myself or where I fit in (I was away for 10 months without coming home). But gradually as the summer passed I found my place again and settled in. Starting university again in September was definitely scary, it felt like starting first year all over again, not knowing teachers or students very well. After a few weeks this feeling had, however, completely disappeared and it felt like i’d never left. One thing I did notice was that I was definitely more outgoing, more engaged with my subjects and eager to try new things. I think this was definitely a consequence of my time away where everything I was doing was new and scary, so being back in a city that I knew everything felt way less scary.

The classes that I took in UCSD gradually seeped into my studies back at Manchester in  a way I couldn’t have imaged or expected. When I was away I felt as though all the different subjects I was taking were completely isolated from other parts of my degree, yet they informed the way I approached classes at Manchester. Whether this be a person I had read, a film I had seen or even just an opinion somebody had voiced, these were individual to me and it gave me a really unique perspective on my degree. I also didn’t realise the role my time away played in my long essay subject. I was in America during the election of Donald Trump, and I found myself completely dumbfounded and confused by the whole experience. Back in Manchester, clearly I couldn’t get this off my mind, and this led me to question the how and why of it happening despite the fact I had been there and lived through it. As a result, I ended up writing my long essay on the election of Donald Trump, studying areas in particular I hadn’t visited to try and learn more about the psyche of those voting for him, looking specifically and class and racial hegemony and the role that played.

Now i’m coming to the end of my degree and applying for jobs every application I write i feel as though i’m discovering new ways my time abroad has helped shape me. This is either through experiences I had or things I gained. I was undeniably homesick for part of my time away, and at the time it felt like this feeling was ruining a lot of the experiences I was having. Looking back I can now see that this isn’t true. It’s only natural to feel homesick when you’re so far away from people you love and care about, negotiating time differences and navigating new experiences. I now know this period has given me a newfound resilience which has turned me into a stronger and more capable person.

It is a daunting prospect figuring out your place when you’ve been away for a while and this can be an off-putting idea for many people thinking of studying abroad, or people who are abroad currently. My advice would be to plan lots of things for your immediate return so you feel like you have thing to return to. But I can also offer you the insight that the gradual realisations you make once you’ve returned are invaluable and can help you in ways you won’t even be able to imagine yet!

I’m hopelessly behind on ‘blogging’ my year abroad mostly because you want to wait for the perfect moment when you’ve done enough stuff you feel like you have something to write about, then suddenly you’ve done loads and have lots to write about but don’t know what to say…

Continue reading “Cool Stuff” →

I was reluctant to write a blog so soon after the election results as most of what I would have written would have been centred on anger, confusion and disbelief. This post has a slightly less cheery notion to it, however I think its one of the most important things that will happen to America whilst I’m here so it would selfish of me not to write about it. The dust has now settled and as America slowly prepares itself for a major shift in its political outlook I can see some of the effects its already having. Being at UCSD I’ve been in a sort of liberal bubble protecting me from a lot of the hatred that currently exists and was shown in the election results. Watching the election, I sat in my apartment with my friends (non-US) in complete shock at what was going on. Coming from England, that though has its political troubles at the moment, it seemed crazy that something like this could be happening right in front of me. I felt an extreme sense of distance from the American people, despite the fact I was right in the heart of it.

The next day there was a huge sense of mourning across the campus. I received multiple emails from faculties and departments reassuring students that UCSD does not stand for the hatred that was so widely glorified during the election. Comforting messages were chalked across the campus grounds. In my politics lecture people weren’t buzzing to discuss the results as you’d expect, but were solemn and quiet.

Prior to the election I felt the campus wasn’t particularly political, it certainly wasn’t known for it, and I never felt a real sense of buzz for the election before it happened. However, moment after the result was announced I felt a major change in this. Not even hours after Trump victory had been announced a protest started, it came past my window so my flat mates and I joined in the march. Thousands of people all unified marching through the campus grounds distancing themselves from divisiveness of the election. It was the most at home I’d felt at UCSD and I felt truly proud to stand with fellow pupils, and even though I don’t live in America I felt it was important to stand up on behalf of those who can’t and on behalf of everyone across the world who disagrees with what happened.

UCSD has a massively diverse student base, and being so close to Mexico a lot of what was raised during the campaign will have direct and detrimental effects for many people who study and work here. Being here for the election and the aftermath was something I’ll never forget, and getting to stand with everyone here is something that will always remain close to my heart.