Becoming an exchange student.

I’m a person who likes familiar things over new things, and I prefer safe things. Also, I am afraid of challenging myself, and I am very cautious. One day, I had an opportunity to go to an exchange student program. The process of preparing for the exchange student program was very difficult, but through the process, I could realize how to accept new things and how to enjoy challenges.

In the second semester of my second year of college, I received a phone call from a friend named Myung-joo. She explained about the exchange student program, asking me, “Are you interested in the exchange student program?” When she first explained about it, I was interested, but it was hard to answer because I was worried about not being good at English and having to challenge the new environment. So, I just listened to what she was saying until the call was over.

After the phone call with her, I couldn’t stop thinking about the exchange student program for about two weeks. So, I asked my parents for advice. My parents said, “It’s a chance to see a new world, so I hope you don’t be afraid and try it.” I hesitated because I knew it would be a difficult challenge. However, I decided to apply for the exchange student program because I was encouraged by my parents’ advice.

The exchange student program selection process was conducted in three stages: document screening, English interview, and Binus University’s document screening. The first course, the document screening process, was simple, so there was no problem. Unfortunately, the English interview and Binus University’s document screening made me cry every day.

First of all, the English interview was conducted the day after the document review results were released, so there was very little time to prepare. I was very worried because I didn’t have much experience talking with someone for a long time in English. So, I made a list of expected questions and organized my answers, and I did an interview simulation with my friend. However, on the day I went to the interview, something unexpected happened to me. This was because the timer broke down in the middle of the interview that went smoothly. Perhaps because the moment the timer broke down was so embarrassing, I made a mistake in the interview that started again. After the interview, I was so sad because I kept thinking about my mistake. However, I could have time to think about how to respond if this situation occurs again next time while continuing to recall my mistakes. Also, as time passed, I realized that it was worthwhile to challenge new things with courage even if I fell down.

After three weeks, the result of the English interview was announced, and I passed. However, I think I was more worried than happy. The reason was that the document screening period of Binus University and the final exam period were the same. I knew it would be a hard time, but I tried to do my best in what was given to me. So, I shortened my sleeping time and made a specific schedule to prepare documents and exams efficiently. Also, I recorded what I did to conducted it. However, despite these efforts, difficult situations continued to occur, and I wondered if I should give up the exchange student
program.

After a long thought, I visited the person in charge of the exchange student program. And I said that I wanted to cancel the application for the exchange student. He gave me the document without saying anything, and I didn’t do anything but looked at the document for five minutes. The reason was that I felt strange while trying to fill out the document. Seeing me hesitated like that, he told me, “I want you to make a choice that you won’t regret.” At that moment, I thought that if I gave up now, I would only give up in the future, and I wanted to try again.

After that, I was able to prepare hard again and get a good grade of third place in the department, and I was able to get the result of passing the exchange student program. Through this experience, I was able to overcome my fear of new things and my fear of challenges, and I was able to learn perseverance and patience. I also gained confidence in myself, and I have faith that I will be able to get along well in Indonesia. Perhaps this belief and confidence alone will make it difficult to go there and get along well. However, I learned how to accept new things and enjoy challenges through this process. So, I think I will be able to overcome them well.