What inspired you to work for your organization?
The impact it has on shaping future generations by building bridges between people and cultures. It's so inspiring to see how students transform during their study abroad experience.
Not only do they learn to speak a different language, but they also learn to think about the world differently. They learn to respect and appreciate, and sometimes even adopt different lifestyles and ways of doing things.
Describe a typical day at work.
It depends on the season. A big part of my work consists of planning and making sure everything runs smoothly, which requires a lot of admin work, budgeting, and email conversations between all parties involved (universities, host families, tour guides, educational institutions, service providers).
The most interesting part of my work, however, happens in the field with students while on excursions or showing them around the town. I love having conversations about culture shock or explaining the why behind various aspects of the local culture.
Palacio Barolo, cultural activity with students in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Why do you do what you do?
I like the variety of tasks I need to manage in my work. I wear many hats– sometimes too many in just one day. From being a project manager to a tour guide, academic advisor, teacher, mom, entertainer, and coach :)
What I enjoy the most is being in service to others, supporting them to navigate the sometimes tricky territory of being in a new country and a new culture.
What is your favorite part of your job?
My favorite part of my job is showing students hidden gems that sometimes even locals don't know about, and helping them find out about places and events that don't pop up on the first page of a Google search. My priority is that students get an authentic experience of the local culture and leave with unique memories that they'll remember for the rest of their lives.
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
I use my education and international background all the time. I do believe that being a foreigner makes me even better equipped to help students adapt to local culture. I can clearly see the differences between both cultures, whereas locals sometimes have blind spots and don't realize that some aspects of their daily lives may be hard to navigate for foreigners.
Students love it when I share my own stories and lived experience from studying abroad, moving countries, and starting a life in a new country from the ground up. It makes their struggles more relatable and also more fun.
What challenges do you often face and how do you overcome them?
I am often overwhelmed. I'm the face of the company on too many fronts (in relation to university, families, students, co-workers), so there's a constant stream of messages and matters to attend to. What helps me is to pause, breathe, identify priorities, and focus on one thing at a time, while still keeping in mind the big picture of things and all that needs to be done.
Eating snails in Lyon, France
What are some current projects you are working on?
Finding new housing options, meaning apartments and host families in Buenos Aires. We always need more as we're slowly growing!
I am also creating curated Google Maps and lists of favorite places and very personal recommendations to share with students that will feature restaurants, museums, or interesting places, depending on the category and budget students are looking for.
What advice would you tell your pre-travel self?
Pack less than you think you'll need :) Obviously, have all the essentials and all types of situations/weather conditions covered, but learn to be a minimalist. You'll appreciate having lighter luggage when moving around, and it's also such a humbling experience to realize how few belongings you actually need, even on longer trips.
What makes your organization special?
Even though ISA became part of a much larger company, it has always preserved the character of a small company. Everyone knows everyone, and people have been loyal to the company for 10, 15, or even more than 20 years. That gives it a very unique, almost family-feeling, and creates an atmosphere of trust, camaraderie, and support.
Why should someone choose your organization over competitors?
ISA stands out because of its people. All the people I've had a chance to meet over the years of my career have a very high professional and educational background, and on top of that, they are really fun and entertaining to be around. It's really the people, their care, and their presence that add so much quality to our programs.
What hopes do you have for the future of your organization?
That we can deliver the same quality of programs as in the past, and that we not only take students to new places, but truly educate them and inspire them to become global citizens with all that it means in this highly polarized world.
I hope that we can continue delivering more than just educational trips, but transformational experiences that either determine students' professional trajectory in some way or simply will be remembered for the rest of their lives. Also that we create spaces where all students feel safe to be themselves and accepted.
Prague excursion with ISA Berlin students
What is your organization's mission and how do you continue to work toward it?
ISA's mission is "to ignite personal growth through a wide range of affordable education abroad opportunities with a commitment to exceptional support for all participants and their institutions." I believe we teach students by example as well, so I focus a lot on my own personal growth, making sure I don't get stuck in routine. I make sure I feel inspired about the culture, the country, and the city, so that I can transmit the same enthusiasm to our students as well.
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
I hope that participants take away the experience of finding who they are, which often happens when we travel and are exposed to different places, flavors, and cultures. I hope that they learn or deepen their language skills, and through that develop a different way of seeing things and looking at life.
I also hope that they become much more independent, resilient, mature, and maybe even recognize the unjust privileges they have when exposed to people who were simply born into a different context.
How do you help support participants?
In terms of daily life, there are a lot of practical questions about where to go and what to do. But the biggest support often comes when navigating the emotional ups and downs of being abroad: when things don't go as planned, when they feel overwhelmed, get sick, are nervous about exams, or struggle with the language barrier.
I help them normalize their experiences and see where they are in their process of cultural adjustment, explaining why certain things are different, trying to remove judgment around certain topics, and helping them find their own inner resources to go through the process.
If you could participate on one of your organization's programs, where would you go and what would you do?
Costa Rica. I would love to experience its nature, so I'd spend a lot of time on the beach and traveling around the islands. I'd also love to meet my colleagues over there and try out the local food. Tropical scenery is something that's completely missing from my travel log so far, so Costa Rica would be the first on my list!
Drinking mate and teaching students tango in Argentina
Why is it important for people to travel abroad and experience new cultures?
It makes us feel more connected. On the one hand, we see that some things are done much better in other countries, and so we develop critical thinking skills and do not readily accept things in our own culture just because they've always been done that way.
On the other hand, as we're far away from our own home, we become much more appreciative of our own traditions and all that made us who we are, which we may have taken for granted or not have even taken into consideration.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Travel that respects local context, doesn't destroy the local environment, and doesn't negatively impact local communities. Travel that is centered around transformation and connection, rather than appropriation or exploitation for the purpose of taking a selfie in some famous place. Meaningful travel includes interest and curiosity to learn about the people, their traditions, and the history of places.
What qualities in program & host community relations are important to you? (And your organization?)
Argentina is a culture of sharing. And that's a huge difference compared to the US, so students learn an important quality that comes out in any social context while being here. What is quite specific about our Buenos Aires program is the cultural immersion that students get.
Argentinians are very approachable, easy to make friends with, and very welcoming to foreigners. You meet someone, and within an hour, you get invited to their house or family barbecue. Spontaneity, expressiveness, and sharing truly describe Argentinians. All you think is impossible is possible in this country :)
