While being a student athlete at any school is a challenge, it is much more challenging to move to a new country to pursue an athletic career. American International College takes pride in comforting international students and welcoming them to a completely different culture. Aleksandra Lucic, Victoria Mendez, and Gabryela Castro de Jesus shared their experiences with The Yellow Jacket as international student athletes at AIC.
Choosing the right college is difficult for all athletes, and that goes for international students as well. Not only do they have to decide which school will fulfill their athletic goals, but more importantly, which school will be the right academic fit? Deciding where to spend the next stage of their athletic and academic career is a massive decision, one that AIC hopes to make smoother.
Aleksandra Lucic is a first-year on the women’s volleyball team. She double majors in psychology and business with hopes of being a therapist. Lucic is from Belgrade, Serbia and coming to Massachusetts for college is her first time in the United States. Furthering her education in America was important to her while being able to pursue volleyball.
Lucic’s day-to-day is filled with many classes as a double major and practice on top of that. She starts her day out by going to her classes, and then usually has lunch with her friends and teammates. Then she attends practice, which takes up about two hours of her time, with film before that. After practice is complete, she usually eats dinner with her teammates at the Dining Commons. After her packed day, she must make sure she gets her assignments done before she can unwind for bed.
Lucic stated that she has had a generally positive experience at AIC. “It was definitely different from Serbia,” she said, “but I like the people at AIC and being a part of a team has really helped me adjust.” She also shared that she appreciates having other international student on the team with her. “I know they can relate to the culture change. I also like that there are other Serbians on the team because that helped me connect with people quickly.”
Still, moving to a new place requires an adjustment, and Lucic also shared her struggles. “The classes can be challenging,” she said. ” It takes me a bit longer [to write papers], but I am glad I have teammates and friends that are American to help me with that.”
Victoria Mendez is a sophomore on the women’s volleyball team and she shared her thoughts on AIC as well. “Vico” as her teammates call her, is an international business major. She hopes to help build relationships with multinational companies and to help with imports and exports. As a retuning setter from Uruguay, she had lots to say about her experience.
Mendez’s day looks very similar to Lucic’s. She starts out by going to classes in the morning and grabbing food in between with teammates and friends, usually at the Hive. Then she goes back to her room to get ready for film and practice. She ends her evening with dinner at the DC with her teammates. Mendez then goes back to her room and does her homework before bed.
“The experience has been good because I came into a team where there were a lot of Spanish-speaking people,” Mendez expressed. While this helped her adjust to her new surroundings, she was not immune to homesickness. “It was still hard because I am so far from home,” she said, “and it is the first time I am that far from home by myself.”
Still, Mendez would recommend the opportunity to others. “I think it’s a great experience,” she said, “and everyone should do it because you can meet a lot of people from all over the world. I made great friends here.”
In spite of some downsides for the retuning Yellow Jacket, Mendez has managed to be successful. “The school is in a different language,” she said, “so sometimes I struggle with the language in the classes and the concepts and everything. But the teachers are understanding and know that you are international.”
Finally, Mendez expressed how she is “very grateful that [she] came to this school with many other international students.” Her gratitude also owes to the fact that AIC “is very inclusive with many different cultures and personalities. It is a good challenge for me individually.”
Gabryela Castro de Jesus is a senior transfer student from Sao Paulo, Brazil. This isn’t her first time in America; her previous school was Lakeland College in Florida, so she shared her experience about that.
Castro de Jesus’s day is just like her teammates’. It starts off by going to her classes, then getting ready for film. After that is her two-hour practice. When it is done, it’s time for dinner, then time for bed. Her major is criminal justice, which she hopes will lead her into a role at the FBI.
Castro de Jesus shared how her experience at AIC has been relatively neutral. There have been good and bad times. “It is very different, culturally, [from Brazil], and I miss home a lot.” Being so far from Brazil, she expressed how it can be tough sometimes to wake up in Massachusetts. “Luckily, I have made some good friends and am close with my team. That helps with missing home.” She said that being busy helps alleviate the longing for home as well. “I am very grateful that I got the opportunity to study here and play with a team from many different cultures,” she said. “That is something I cherish about AIC.”
Overall, being a Yellow Jacket is a positive experience for international students, whether they are incoming freshmen, returning sophomores, or transfer students. All three have expressed that however difficult it is to be far from home, their experience at AIC has made it easier for them to be here. They cherish their teammates and appreciate the once-in-a-lifetime experience of coming to America to study and to pursue their sport further. Although not everything is perfect about their college experience, these international student athletes have found a home at AIC.
