Reflections on My Experience By: Ms. Kheang Somanita Studying Abroad
You have stuffed your luggage to the brim, hugged your family and friends goodbye, and boarded your flight to an exotic international locale that you will soon call home. How is it? Spending many years obtaining a degree abroad can be one of the most thrilling experiences, but it will not be a complete experience if you do not prepare for the “challenges.” It is readily admitted that time waits for no one. In 2012, I had just graduated from the University of Cambodia and made the choice to continue my journey by pursuing my Master’s Degree at Chulalongkorn University in Thailand. Presently, I am moving forward as a doctoral student at
Lindenwood University in Missouri, United States. Life is hard, but I would describe every struggle I have been through to reach where I am standing today as easy. I do love the quotation from Dr. Seuss, “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?” It keeps motivating me to go ahead for what I want to accomplish and seize every opportunity that comes by.
After I graduated from Santhormok High School in Phnom Penh, I applied for scholarships from many universities, and I was lucky enough to be awarded scholarships from 4 universities: Royal University of
Law and Economics (RULE), University of Cambodia (UC), International University (IU), and Cambodian Mekong University (CMU). Among these, I selected 2 universities for my bachelor degrees: the Royal University of Law and Economics for the major of Finance and Banking, and the University of Cambodia for the major of English Literature. I started both majors at the same time, which meant I no longer had free time because I had to review lessons for my assignments and exams.
By August 2011, I had completed my Bachelor’s Degree from the Royal University of Law and Economics with the honor of being the #1 student in my class, and I received a job offer from OSK Indochina Securities Limited as a securities representative in September 2011. I had been working there for 3 months when I was promoted to the position of research analyst in the Research Department. Every single day I had to seek for updated information regarding government regulations and the situation of companies involved in the stock market. In addition, I simultaneously accepted another job as a part-time English teacher in CamBright School in the evening; hence, my life was full of work, but it was ultimately worth the effort because it was the first step towards my involvement in the education field. I learned to manage the class effectively for my students, and I realized that being a teacher is not a piece of cake, but it requires patience and the ability to balance your lesson plan with the appropriate teaching techniques and problem solving skills in order to engage the students in learning and inspiring them to achieve their goals.
By 2012, I was awarded the scholarship to pursue my master’s degree at Chulalongkorn University, in Bangkok, Thailand to study Non-Formal Education. The scholarship I received was through a program with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport sponsored by the Thai Princess. Life can become a bit challenging when you move to a place where Thai is the only language used in your daily life, but to cope I took an opportunity to be a teacher’s assistant in the Lifelong Education Department, Faculty of Education. Eventually
I was able to improve my Thai, and became fluent with not only reading, writing, speaking and listening but typing as well. I learned to be more independent in both my studies and work so that I could achieve straight A’s (except one B+ that I received in my Statistics class).
In 2013, another opportunity flew in, and I was awarded a scholarship to complete an exchange program at Lindenwood University, in Missouri, United States in the field of adult education or simply called Andragogy. This experience broadened my world; I have developed both my academic and personal understanding, as I gained different perspectives in making decisions for life improvement. I began to get more deeply involved in the adult education field, and was accepted to work as a graduate assistant in the Education Department at Lindenwood University.
By early 2014, I was back in Thailand working to finish up my Master’s Degree, and I finally did it in July 2014. Meanwhile, I was contacted via email that the doctoral scholarship I had applied for at Lindenwood University was approved, and I was invited to return to start my program in August 2014. I was so excited with the coming opportunity, which marked a very significant movement in my academic career. Notwithstanding, I was also officially accepted to work as a doctoral assistant in the Education Department for the duration of my degree program there as well. This wonderful experience has involved a variety of people coming from different parts of the world, and it is clear to see why the United States is named, “United.”
Even if you are a very well-prepared student, you will encounter some cultural shock whilst you settle in a new place. I was involved in many classes which I found very challenging – you need to be able to stand out in presenting your own opinion on the subject matter rather than just sitting and listening to the lecture. Discussion is embraced as the most significant part of the class, and professors are always accessible either via office hours, phone calls, or email. You will not be left alone, as your professors are all very supportive – they try to assist you by providing all the sources you need for either your dissertation development or your personal life. People are so caring and friendly, and one thing you never want to miss is to make more friends and enjoy life to the fullest as American people do – they study hard, work hard, and play hard at the same time. However, since I am the only Cambodian student at Lindenwood Unviersity, I sometimes feel lonesome when I can’t speak Khmer with anyone. It sounds ridiculous, but you would feel it too, if you encountered my circumstance. Anyway, I have learned to communicate with people from varies backgrounds, and I made friends with them quickly, as I am also a friendly person. For the weather adjustment, there is no doubt that winter has frozen me to frostbite, and it sometimes everything shuts down when a big snow storm hits.
Last but not least, I would like to express my profound gratitude to my parents, and professors in Cambodia, Thailand and the United States for putting all your tenacity in polishing my growth in terms of both academic life and personal life. These efforts have ensured that I could move forward rapidly with the continuous opportunities coming to my life. Without your assistance, I would not be standing where I am now. You all are the light in my life. All the knowledge and skills have I gained from the University of Cambodia, Royal University of Law and Economics, Chulalongkorn University and Lindenwood University lighten me up with different perspectives in life, and I am wiser now. I also would like to encourage all Cambodian students to dream big and dare to go for what you want; nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself. Failure is not the end of the world, but rather it is a stepping stone to achieve something big. I would suggest every student to start moving out of your comfort zone and cleaning up the comfortable mess that prevents you from achieving your goals. Life is nothing without learning, so keep yourself educated through both formal and informal learning.
By: Ms. Kheang Somanita
