Alex Petrov

By Rachel Dinh

What if you had the opportunity to learn Russian in Russia for six weeks? Alex Petrov, who graduated from Tempe Prep in May, was ecstatic when he received the opportunity.  On arriving in Kirov, the city in western Russia with a population of 500,000 people, he said, “I can’t really say I had a specific impression of Russia when I arrived. This may be due to the fact that I have traveled abroad before. Also, the NSLI-Y program emphasizes tolerance and an open mind to new experience so you learn not to ‘judge a book by its cover.’ If anything it felt just like the States.”

Many kids who travel abroad have a hard time getting used to their country’s food. Fortunately for Alex, this was not a problem. He says, “Getting used to the food was not difficult. The produce was always fresh and cheap. But, I am also used to eating Eastern European foods. Some of my peers had trouble adapting to the food, but the staff of the program were very accommodating to those who needed adjustment in their regime/diet.”

Every NSLI-Y student has a different host family. Some families are more social than others, taking the student out often and making sure to spend time with them. Others are a little more reserved. This was the case for Alex. “My host family experience was not great unfortunately. They were very nice and I am very grateful for their hospitality, however they were very shy. They barely communicated with me most of the time.”

This may have been a setback, but it forced Alex to take charge of his Russian learning and go out of his way to learn more about the country he was living in. “I am conversational. It is very surprising that I could attain this level in only six weeks,” he says.

Six weeks across the country can have its ups and downs. Alex remembers, “The jet lag was definitely an obstacle. But homesickness was much harder to overcome. Even if you’re not a person that gets homesick it is very easy to feel isolated or stranded there.”

The commute was also a little different from what Alex is used to. Since his family lived very far outside of the city, it took him 2 hours to get to school and 2 hours to get back every day. Some of his favorite memories were the few days he stayed with the NSLI-Y group and a group of Russian kids before the NSLI-Y group moved in with their host families.

Looking back at the whole experience, Alex says, “I recommend this program to anyone and everyone. It truly was life changing in more aspect than one. It fostered a sense of independence that was noticeable in everyone that attended the program. And the long study hours are definitely worth it. It is amazing how much you can learn in six weeks.”

Abby Everding

Abby Everding, a 2017 graduate of Tempe Prep, has always loved learning Korean, and now she will be getting the opportunity of a lifetime to study it for a whole year. Before this, she had done the NSLI-Y six-week program in 2016. The program left such an impact on her that she became an American Foreign Service Intercultural Programs volunteer, presented multiple PowerPoints about her experience to TPA students, and attended the Concordia Language Village in Minnesota for Korean this past summer.

The one-year program is slightly different from the summer program. Students are placed in a local high school and take classes with Korean students.  These classes are not graded, but exist to provide an immersion experience.  The NSLI-Y student can stay with up to three host families (one for each season) or can stay with one host family the whole trip (or some combination of these two).

Right now Abby’s proficiency is at Intermediate Low, but she is excited to improve her fluency and believes that her Korean will “drastically improve with classes and immersion.” She hopes to be much better at conversation after the first month. She plans to start a Youtube channel and blog detailing her experiences. “I’ll try and focus on the positives during my time in Korea and I’ll constantly be reminding myself that the program is really worth it, despite some homesickness,” she adds.

Abby just left for Korea on Aug. 28, but she has some advice for anyone who is passionate about learning a language or living in a different country. “Studying abroad is such an amazing experience,” she says. “In many ways, it’s a challenge.  You have to struggle to communicate, adapt to cultural differences, and learn some independence.  But honestly, it helps you grow so much.  Please, take advantage of opportunities like NSLI-Y where you can study abroad as a high school student for free.  The program develops you immensely as a person and opens so many doors.  Check out their application (open now!) at www.nsliyforyouth.org and apply today!”