Atiya Kuwehan, Grade 11
UWC Maastricht
That feeling of anticipation, fear, restlessness, eagerness and a dollop of mild panic. Yes. From the moment you first send in your application form to your national committee, to the time when you finally receive the last acceptance letter from your respective school, these emotions become part of your reality. At least this was the case for me.
My UWC experience was nothing like I had imagined it would be. I mean this in both great and not so great ways. I went through every emotion possible during the past six months, ranging from happiness to sadness, homesickness, and then back to elevation… the works!
I remember the feeling of stepping into the UWCM campus, as beautiful as this moment was, it is safe to say that this was one of the most nerve-wracking moments of my life. I arrived at school much later than planned; my room allocations were missing, my school had not had my name on the system, so I did not have a locker, badge or email address. What was worse was the fact that I felt that the people around me had already started making friends, and that left me feeling many steps behind. Everything was moving too fast. My mother said goodbye to me, and suddenly the reality that I was alone in a new country, new school and on an entirely different continent dawned on me.
Needless to say, the first few weeks felt uncomfortable and unfamiliar. There were too many people all with so many different names and new faces at every corner. Navigating this new world was quite the challenge.
Going to a UWC does not mean that everything will pan out as you had planned, you might suddenly feel inadequate, or at times feel unhappy and overwhelmed. Maybe you have this LITTLE voice at the back of your mind constantly nagging and reminding you on how to be the ideal “UWC student”. These sudden huge drastic changes may bring in the “dreaded” imposter syndrome that begins to convince you that you just do not fit in. This is where vulnerability comes in as it really does help forge the most authentic connections with your peers during your time at UWC. In all honesty, speaking and opening up is not the easiest thing to do, but I found that talking about my experiences made the not so great times a lot more bearable.
Emotions and vulnerability. Admitting that you may be struggling.
This by no means invalidates your experience as a UWC student. I look back and wonder why I felt such intense guilt at even thinking that I might not be as happy as I had imagined at school. How dare I? I would not even give myself a chance to entertain that thought; this was my dream after all.
You do not have an obligation to feel good all the time. UWC is a fulfilling and exciting journey; it really is. But as great as it is, it comes with trials and tribulations; overwhelming feelings of homesickness, moments of loneliness, and a few unexpected low grades, but that is all part of the experience. You are not alone. Take that first step and speak to someone about how you feel. You might just be surprised about how many people are feeling the exact same way.
That folks is the power of vulnerability. It allows you to build raw, real and authentic friendships that carry you throughout your IB experience and beyond. Learn how to use the vulnerability to your advantage. You might just find yourself having the most intense, eye-opening conversations at 3:00am (maybe not so much for those early to “bed-ers”). But you will feel lighter, and this is the first step to fully immersing yourself into the beautiful UWC culture and making this once in a lifetime escapade your own.
You can trust me on this one.
My UWC experience was nothing like I had imagined it would be. I mean this in both great and not so great ways. I went through every emotion possible during the past six months, ranging from happiness to sadness, homesickness, and then back to elevation… the works!
I remember the feeling of stepping into the UWCM campus, as beautiful as this moment was, it is safe to say that this was one of the most nerve-wracking moments of my life. I arrived at school much later than planned; my room allocations were missing, my school had not had my name on the system, so I did not have a locker, badge or email address. What was worse was the fact that I felt that the people around me had already started making friends, and that left me feeling many steps behind. Everything was moving too fast. My mother said goodbye to me, and suddenly the reality that I was alone in a new country, new school and on an entirely different continent dawned on me.
Needless to say, the first few weeks felt uncomfortable and unfamiliar. There were too many people all with so many different names and new faces at every corner. Navigating this new world was quite the challenge.
Going to a UWC does not mean that everything will pan out as you had planned, you might suddenly feel inadequate, or at times feel unhappy and overwhelmed. Maybe you have this LITTLE voice at the back of your mind constantly nagging and reminding you on how to be the ideal “UWC student”. These sudden huge drastic changes may bring in the “dreaded” imposter syndrome that begins to convince you that you just do not fit in. This is where vulnerability comes in as it really does help forge the most authentic connections with your peers during your time at UWC. In all honesty, speaking and opening up is not the easiest thing to do, but I found that talking about my experiences made the not so great times a lot more bearable.
Emotions and vulnerability. Admitting that you may be struggling.
This by no means invalidates your experience as a UWC student. I look back and wonder why I felt such intense guilt at even thinking that I might not be as happy as I had imagined at school. How dare I? I would not even give myself a chance to entertain that thought; this was my dream after all.
You do not have an obligation to feel good all the time. UWC is a fulfilling and exciting journey; it really is. But as great as it is, it comes with trials and tribulations; overwhelming feelings of homesickness, moments of loneliness, and a few unexpected low grades, but that is all part of the experience. You are not alone. Take that first step and speak to someone about how you feel. You might just be surprised about how many people are feeling the exact same way.
That folks is the power of vulnerability. It allows you to build raw, real and authentic friendships that carry you throughout your IB experience and beyond. Learn how to use the vulnerability to your advantage. You might just find yourself having the most intense, eye-opening conversations at 3:00am (maybe not so much for those early to “bed-ers”). But you will feel lighter, and this is the first step to fully immersing yourself into the beautiful UWC culture and making this once in a lifetime escapade your own.
You can trust me on this one.
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