Where are they now?
Emilie Turner
Former committee position: Editor
Degree: MA Politics & International Relations Current job: English Language Assistant (British Council)
Hi Emilie! Thanks for agreeing to the profile. First of all, for any new members who may not know you, could you please tell us a bit about yourself, your time in Aberdeen and your role in Her Campus?
Hello! My name is Emilie, and I was an editor for Her Campus last year. What that meant was that I would take all the articles each week, and along with the rest of my editing team, we would proof-read the articles each week. I studied Politics and International Relations, so I spent most of my time either writing articles trying to make politics interesting or talking about my study abroad experience to Albuquerque in the United States and trying to convince everyone else to travel! (I’m definitely one of those people that doesn’t stop talking about studying abroad, but when you are lucky enough to have such an amazing opportunity, why should you?!)
What have you been up to since you graduated? We know from your Instagram that you’re currently in Spain and we are muy envidiosas!
Yes, I am! I have been living and working in Spain as an English Language Assistant with the British Council. It has been such an amazing opportunity! Due to a few complications with the placement process, I didn’t find out that I was going to officially be coming to Spain until two weeks before I needed to fly out. I now live in a city called Valladolid, which is about an hour north of Madrid on the high-speed train.
It has been a great opportunity to travel (which is my absolute favourite thing to do!) all around Spain – especially parts I hadn’t seen before and may not necessarily have known about if I didn’t live here. I have also had the chance to visit my friend in Milan, which was particularly exciting! I just want to see and experience as much as possible, as I realise how lucky I am, and therefore I am really trying to make the most of it.
The whole experience has been really rewarding but also a lot of hard work. I remember talking to my mum about a month after I had moved here and saying that I feel like I learned more in the first three weeks here than I did in four years of university!
(This is a picture of me after an absolutely gorgeous hike I did in a place called Orbaneja del Castillo)
Wow, that sounds intense – but also super exciting! What does a day in your life look like?
Well, each morning I work at school. I am an English Language Assistant, which means that I go into each class for an hour a week, and I help the children practice their English. I work in a bilingual school, so half of their classes are completely in English, and the other half is in Spanish. It is really popular in Spain because the Spanish government wants as many people as possible speaking at least two languages.
In the afternoon I go to the language school and take Spanish classes. I absolutely love these! When I moved to Spain, I knew absolutely no Spanish, and I am really proud to see how far I have come in the short few months I have been here! I never used to really try in school, because I couldn’t see the point, but now I am working really hard to develop a decent level of Spanish, because I see how important it is to learn a language – it’s not just learning the words, but learning about a culture and a country, and I think it is really interesting!
In the evenings, my friends and I like to head out to the bars and restaurants near Plaza Mayor. In Spain the eating times are a lot different to Scotland, so often we don’t sit down for dinner until 9:00 in the evening, and even that is considered early.
On the weekends I like to travel around Castille Leon, which is the region I am living in – visiting all the cities and eating all the tapas!
(Taken in Segovia, one of my favourite cities, in front of the Roman Aquaduct!)
What’s the biggest difference between Aberdeen and Valladolid?
Like I said above, the eating times are very different, and sometimes a bit hard to keep up with – I often get quite hungry around 7:00!
Another difference I have noticed here is that Spain is a very outdoors country. I don’t mean that they go out on hikes all the time – rather, the streets are always filled with people going out for a walk or to get a drink. It’s a very sociable country, and people of all ages are going out to visit their family and friends every night.
Appearance is also really important here, which I really enjoy. Everyone is always really well dressed here, with their hair and make-up perfect. No one throws on yoga pants to run to the shops. It’s a great inspiration to rebuild a new wardrobe with!
What do you get up to in your free time?
In my free time, I am trying to travel, see and experience as many new things as possible! For example, I was invited to celebrate Chinese New Year through a friend of a friend, and I had the most amazing time, trying all the different foods, meeting new people, practicing my Spanish and having an opportunity to experience a Chinese New Year.
I also started playing volleyball at the beach next to the river we have in Valladolid. It’s a bit out of the blue, and not something I expected to do, but I absolutely love it, and it’s good for getting me out of the house.
My friends here got a dog just before Christmas, so I like joining them taking her for a walk. Not only do I get to spend time was the most adorable puppy, but I am getting to explore even more of the city!
(Abril, my friend’s adorable dog!)
How cute! Is there anything you miss from being an undergrad or from living in Aberdeen?
Absolutely Her Campus! I joined Her Campus in my third year to meet some new people and met the most amazing group of girls! Everyone was so different and interesting, and it was so exciting getting to know everyone! I miss all our writers’ meetings discussions and all the amazing socials that we had! Her Campus is definitely my favourite memory of Aberdeen!
That’s so nice to hear! We definitely miss having you too! Finally, do you have a few words of advice for those of us who have yet to experience the ‘joy’ of fourth year?
Honestly, my advice is that it isn’t as bad as everyone says it is (at least I thought!). I would say, start early and be organised. I can’t tell you what a difference that makes. If you know what you are supposed to be doing and have a rough idea of how you are going to do it, about 70% of your stress disappears!
I would also say make the most of your last year! Make an Aberdeen bucket list. We all live there for four years, and every year we always say “oh I need to try this or go there…” but never actually do them. Well, in the fourth year, get together with your friends, or do it yourself, but sit down, and write down everything you want to do, and then actually do it! University may be the last time you have so much free time and the ability to do all these things for a while – so do them!
That’s some solid advice! Thank you, Emilie – we’re excited to see what you get up to next!