5 Goals I Want to Accomplish During My Semester Abroad

This semester (and year, honestly) looks completely unorthodox then the rest of my time in college will. I write this as I currently complete my third week in Rome, Italy. My love for travel started for me when I was very young, and being able to continue my studies, stay on track to graduate and still explore new parts of the world is such a blessing. But as much as studying abroad may seem  cool and exciting, many students forget the first half of that commitment: studying. At the end of the day, we are still students with academic commitments to follow through with. So, with all that considered, I want to make my semester abroad a huge learning experience and time to remember for all the right reasons and make sure to stay true to myself and learn a healthy balance between my responsibilities and my goals. With that being said, here are 5 things I look forward to holding myself accountable for this semester away.

1. Visit at least 5 more countries. My original goal for the year was to visit 5 new countries, and while that is still a nice and humble goal, I have already hit 3 during my first week. I convinced myself to commit to this program on the basis that I would never have the opportunity to travel for 4 months straight again. And although I don’t want or can afford to travel to a new country every weekend like my peers, I still want to keep my word and travel as much as I can. So for that, starting today, I want to visit at least 5 more new countries. Luckily enough for me, I leave for Portugal the night I write this so that takes 1 country off the list for me!
2. Get all A’s. This has been a goal of mine my entire time here at St. John’s. However, I have never been able to do it. My grades aren’t bad, but I feel like my in person commitments are drastically minimized and I only have 3 in person classes a week, so now is the best time to lock in and stop giving myself excuses on why I can’t get good grades. Although the classwork and expectations are higher and harder here, I think I owe it to myself during such a transformative time in my life to prove that I can accomplish this goal of mine. 
3. Integrate myself into the local culture. It is so easy as a foreigner to stick to your pack and your ways and not leave your comfort zone. For example, even though I am frequently learning italian, I get so nervous when it comes time to speak it so I just don’t. But I hope I can shove down those nerves and give myself the bravery and opportunity to really try to make relationships with locals and really dive head first into the culture because whether or not I admit it, this is not a vacation, I am living here and the least I can do is embrace the experience fully.
4. Fulfill my responsibilities to the fullest. During this semester, I had the opportunity to step away from all my roles. But I didn’t, and I knew I never wanted to. One thing about me is I am a workaholic and although I am away and traveling as much as I can, I like to keep myself busy and productive. With all three boards I am on, I hope that I fulfill my roles to the fullest, don’t let anyone down and help grow those programs while I am with them! Secondly, this semester I am serving as an RA for the first time. It has been a dream of mine to be an RA for years and the opportunity finally came to fruition and I truly hope that the experience is worthwhile and that I do everything right to be a good RA. Whether that means being on top of things as a member of staff, or being someone my residents and peers can come to, I hope to bring a positive experience out of being an RA enough that it can open the doors for me to be one when I return to New York next year.
5. Leave here healthier. My body and my health have always been a tricky and complex thing in my life, something I’m not very proud of. And although I have so much love for myself and am not always criticizing myself, I do understand that enough is enough. Even though I am not willing to go to any extremes for the sake of my mental health, I feel like the difference in living in Rome vs. the US forces me into healthier habits and I just hope that I can commit myself to a healthier lifestyle while I am here. For example, even though New York is very walkable, since the public transit here is not as good, walking is the default. You learn to walk everywhere and it’s enjoyable because each turn you make is a new sight to see. Even the food is automatically healthier because there are fewer preservatives and chemicals in it. Even if I eat pasta 3 times a day, it’s still healthier than eating pasta 3 times a day in the States. So, I hope through incremental and intentional shifts and choices, I can leave this semester feeling and looking healthier than I did when I arrived.

5 Goals for this semester. They seem like big ones, but I think they can be accomplished. I hope that this semester brings me clarity, success, and happiness and I hope that these are the goals that keep me on track to accomplishing that. 

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