I have always been passionate about learning, mainly when it comes to foreign languages. Isn’t it cool to be able to express your thoughts in another language? To understand and respond to other cultures around the world? With my passion for English, desire to travel the world, and wanting the opportunity to get to know more people and places, the idea of becoming a linguist, translator, or interpreter was perfect for me.
Studying foreign language at university does not mean that you will be purely reading books about morphology, syntax, or phonetics, but in fact you will be learning a lot about Anglophone cultures and experience some of its traditions! Just to mention, school kicks off just at the beginning of November, and you will have fun celebrating Halloween. You can prepare your fun scary costume, and sign up for the theatre play or music band (solos are welcome and encouraged to perform). Those of you who do not fancy acting, playing musical instruments or singing, could simply prepare delicious snacks for the party – let your imagination run wild. Apart from Halloween, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in spring each year. This time, everything turns green and in addition to a vivid programme, you can also test your knowledge in quizzes.
During the school year, your language proficiency can be enhanced thanks to the ENJOY journal. If you love writing stories, poems, songs, and jokes, or you would like to bring up some other topic that you consider worth mentioning, go ahead and make it happen! The editorial team is always friendly and looking for new, creative colleagues. The more activities you take part in, the more experience you get. And the more experience you get, the more career possibilities you have.
The biggest opportunity at Constantine the Philosopher University (UKF) that might change your life is to enrol on the Erasmus+ programme. The Department of Language Pedagogy and Intercultural Studies (KLIS) cooperates with several universities and, to be honest, it might be one of the best decisions you will ever make during your studies either at the bachelor’s or master’s degree. Finally, you will have the opportunity to speak the foreign language without needing translation to mother tongue, which means that you will become more fluent and your comprehension will be greatly improved. Moreover, you will meet so many new people from different cultures who will all be in the same boat, and you will start new friendships (some of them for a lifetime) and make new memories. Apart from linguistic and social benefits, travelling the world you will learn many life lessons of personal and emotional value.
After I came back from Belfast, I participated in the Buddy System of the Erasmus Student Network (ESN). This means that when a foreign student comes to Slovakia (UKF), you become their contact person, good friend and buddy! Someone he or she could rely on to help them settle down. Thanks to this buddy system, I met great Irish, Turkish, and Bulgarian students.
Because I accepted all the challenges and opportunities at KLIS, I could travel the world, meet awesome people (teachers and peers), have lovely experiences, and most of all I found a career I felt comfortable in.
As a graduate of KLIS at UKF you could become a teacher, translator, interpreter, or maybe a journalist writing various articles in a foreign language. My career journey was slightly different however, and I like it. I found a position in a company that organizes international conferences worldwide. As the producer for a particular event, you are given the name, main topic, and industry of the conference that you will be organizing in the following weeks. After doing some research online and over the phone, you are confident enough to invite people from top management to come to your conference and speak. During this process I always have interesting discussions with professionals, so I better understand the topic of the conference and therefore I can always shape the programme just the right way. During these few weeks, the event producer is responsible for end-to-end delivery. The result is that I will see what I have put together because finally I get to travel to the destination where the conference takes place. Event management also has other great experiences too, such as lifelong learning, using English as a communication tool, and travelling and understanding what industry might be relevant to your career in the future.
Last but not least, enjoy life while you are young. Studying at university, you are already mature enough to set your own freedoms and boundaries and prepare the path which you will follow after you graduate and leave the family nest. Therefore, use the opportunity to take interesting classes, participate in activities which are prepared for all students at the university premises, enrol on the Erasmus+ programme, sign up for a summer of exchange possibilities abroad, practise your English as much as you can, and stay positive! Good luck with your studies and life!