Marianne Zarzar is an official CAPA blogger, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance major at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in Sydney.
In this week's post, Marianne opens up about her identity and details her background, both local and international experiences as a student, and how she felt at home in Sydney.
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I am an international student from Mexico studying in the United States. I have lived in Minnesota for around five years now, having finished two years of high school as an exchange student. I have honestly loved Minnesota ever since I got here my junior year of high school. Since I am already an international student, a lot of people were confused as to why I wanted to go abroad, given that I was technically already abroad. The answer, I think, is that international students see the world a little differently. I think we see, literally, a world of opportunities and feel a want and need to explore as many of them as we can.
At school with my friends in Mexico.
Studying abroad has always been a dream of mine. Ever since I was in school in Mexico and had the privilege of having American and Canadian teachers, I have dreamed of going abroad. My teachers instilled in me the desire to learn more about different cultures, and that desire has led me to where I am today. After that first year abroad, I ended up at an international school, still in Minnesota, where I was able to meet people from countries I did not even know existed. I think that was why studying abroad during college was so important to me.
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