I am
Syed Aamir Ali Shah from Pakistan. I was selected to attend one semester
exchange program at Maryville College (Spring 2012) through Global UGRAD
Pakistan funded by US Department of State. I am an Economics major, third year
student. When I came to know that I am assigned to study at Maryville College,
I searched and found it to be very small college. However, I was amazed to
experience it when I got here. Initially, cold days and new food made me
homesick but with the passage of time I got used to that. And as my semester
started, I was successful to register for courses of my choice and soon started
to enjoy classes as Maryville College’s class environment is very open and
competitive.
Moreover, I attended various campus
programs and participated in activities organized by international house
besides visiting nearby tourist sites which added to my exposure to more people
from different countries and gave me chance to share my thoughts and culture.
In addition to that, I volunteered to work in Habitat for Humanity and this
provided me with another dimension to look at American society.
Finally
and fortunately, I was able to find the Muslim community nearby where I visited
every Friday and met some people from my country Pakistan also. I have made a
lot of friends from different countries and this memorable journey is to remain
with me for whole of my life.
