IFSA Study in Sri Lanka: Research Program

My time in Sri Lanka was a great experience overall. I was a bit uncertain about what to expect, but I am so happy I chose my program. The academic format of the program was extremely immersive and really allowed me to learn so much about Sri Lanka. My favorite class, Women, Gender, Culture, Nation, was engaging every day and very relevant to all the things I was experiencing just by living there. For me the biggest highlights of the program were my host family, my independent study project, and my friendships with local students. As an only child, I was really excited to have a host family where I would have host brothers. They provided me with constant entertainment and really helped me with my Sinhala language skills. My host mom and dad (amma and tata in Sinhala) were also incredible. They treated me like one of their own kids and really wanted me to have a great experience. I still talk to my host mom via Facebook Messenger quite often, which is something I was not expecting to gain from this program. On the academic side, I really enjoyed my independent study. I was able to conduct research on children's education and how this is affected by parental labor migration. The ISLE program has such a wide range of connections that I was able to gain access to schools and government officials with ease, which really helped my work. Lastly, in the off times at university I had the opportunity to socialize with local students. For me, this often took the form of cricket matches that were played after classes. I had never played cricket before this, however, I was able to make friends very easily through this sport. Overall I would highly recommend Sri Lanka and I am excited to go back!