Alumni Voice: A home halfway across the world－Rebecca Todesco, La Trobe University, Australia

What do you want to experience at AIU? What do you want to become through study abroad?

In this series of articles, we would like to introduce the articles from past exchange students who have completed their studies at AIU. They will share the most memorable experience, what they learned and how the AIU experience helped them now,  and what they would like to tell international students who are thinking of studying at AIU.

The purpose of studying abroad is different for everyone, but we hope that the stories of alumni will encourage you to consider studying abroad at AIU as a place of learning.

Here is a message from Rebecca Todesco. She was an exchange student who stayed at AIU in Fall 2015 Semester.

Ms. Rebecca Todesco stayed at AIU in Fall 2015 Semester.

The best way to describe Akita International University (AIU) is “a home away from home.”

 It’s amazing how quickly the campus felt like home to me. Whether it was strolling through the breathtaking grounds, some quiet time in the famous library, a game of football on the grass, or a bunch of friends gathered in the cafeteria for dinner, AIU has everything you could want or need when studying abroad.

 The teachers were incredibly helpful and the university itself had plenty of community outreach programs in which I was able to participate. Through these programs, I was able to interact with locals as well as play with and teach English to students ranging from kindergarten to junior high school.

 In fact, it was these very programs that sparked a love of teaching English in me and directly influenced where I am today; an Assistant Language Teacher in Japan!

 One of my most treasured memories of AIU was being the international representative for the 2015 Miss AIU Contest. It was truly an honour to represent the international community onstage and I was warmly welcomed by the event coordinators, fellow contestants, and even random students who stopped me in the hallways to congratulate me or tell me they’d voted for me.

At the 2015 Miss AIU Contest

 During my time at AIU I laughed, I cried, I fell in love and I lived every day to the fullest. And it can be your turn next!

 Anyone looking for an unforgettable study abroad experience needs to look no further than AIU. Don’t be put off by the small study body or the isolated campus: it is these very things that I came to love about AIU and which contributed to it being a tight-knit, friendly, and inclusive environment.