30. What are your academic goals for study in the US?

One of my biggest wishes is to gain completely new knowledge in new academic and cultural
surrounding, especially from the well-developed and tourist-affirmed country as US is. As for a
strongly devoted student of tourism, my opinion is that I can never have the total perspective
about the tourism phenomenon if I do not experience it from the leaders in this field. I look
forward to learning more practical knowledge, solutions and examples, and hopefully to apply
them in my own country.
I have always considered grades as an important segment of education, but not the most
important. Learnt, but not applicable knowledge for prosperity of your community is in my
opinion useless. Therefore, I have always been trying to find ways to improve my learning
acquired on faculty by attending, participating or volunteering in activities related to my field of
interest. So I admit to not devoting my full attention to grades, although I know I am capable to
accomplish higher grades in different circumstances.
My passion through all education have been languages, and chance to live and study in English-
speaking country is something I will wholeheartedly accept so that I can keep bettering my
English.
Additionally, I would like to represent Serbia and my city to my future colleagues and professors,
to approach them my nation, culture and lifestyle, and vice verse, because I am sure there is still
so much we can learn from each other and become unprejudiced and kind personas.

31. What have you experienced in the past that has prepared you for living in the United States
for one year?

A lot of my friends and family worked, lived or studied in the US, and some of them still, so each
their story about diverse aspects and places in the US is increasing my desire and readiness not
only to visit US, but to study there. What I also think prepared me for a one-year-stay in the US,
besides English classes, is that as a member of the “American Corner” in Novi Sad I am
constantly updating information about American society, history and literature from the English-
native speakers, books and movies.
In secondary school I was chosen as one of the best pupils in generation in Russian, to represent
my school and hometown in Nizhny Novgorod, Russian city in alliance with Novi Sad, as well as
to be a part on a study trip to Moscow. Although quite young, I was shown to be good
ambassador, teaching my host family and classmates about distant country of Serbia, and hosting
them back the next year.
Inquisitive and adventurous, I am always eager to travel and taste different kind of life.
Therefore, last two years I have been in tourist-attractive Mediterranean city of Dubrovnik in
Croatia, where I was working and living for about two months with unacquainted people. It
helped me to develop liaison and social skills – to tolerate others persons’ habits and cultural
differences, to be much more flexible and resourceful, to understand on all-the-world languages,
to work in a team, and I gained invaluable life and work experience.

32. What would you like to gain from the Global UGRAD program and how do you think
participating in Global UGRAD will affect your future?

I concluded that independence of being left on your own for a long period of time, far away from
family and people you know is something I must do once in my lifetime although it sounds hard,
since it is an ideal chance to show myself who I am, how nimble and what capable of. All in all,
to explore my personal limits.

Undoubtedly, participating in your program would thoroughly enrich my life experience. Apart
from elucidated academic goals which I would tend to achieve, I would certainly make new
friendships with classmates, roommates, colleagues from volunteer-work, travel companions and
probably many more people that I would met during my stay. Having a person with whom you
can share the same interests, ideas and intents for a friend is something we all pursue for and your
program would raise this possibility to me.

In addition, enrollment in community life through volunteering offered by your program will help
me to get to know my surroundings better and its issues, and to contribute with everything from
area of my competence.
Upon my return to Serbia, I see myself as a person with widen views, with even more
enthusiasm, willingness and certainty to accomplish my dreams, followed by acquired experience
from the internship as well as inspiration of journey across the US. I will encourage my friends
and colleagues to be enterprising and active, to invest in their knowledge and to be the ones who
will make a change in our country’s society.

B. Using one or more examples, please describe a challenge at school, work or in your personal
life that you have had to overcome. How did you resolve the situation? How has this experience
affected who you are today and the way you see the world?

In today’s conditions of economic crisis, growth of unemployed people, incertitude, climate

change and extinction of traditional values along with animal and vegetable species, only those
who are the best survive. But how to balance all aspects and be the best at everything (school,
work and everyday life)?

I was taught from a little to be successful at school, to nourish excellent grades, to try to be
among the best pupils in the class and generation as if that would assure me secure and bright
future. When it was crucial moment in my life, to decide what to study and to dedicate my career
to, I did not want to decide. I already knew it, all the way back from elementary school.
I was always interested in geography, foreign languages and exploration - it all led to my love for
tourism. But it is extremely hard to appropriate for something that is pretty unknown to your
closest people, something that exist on very low level in your country with also low chances to
employ on unstable work position with unenviable salary. From the very beginning I find
acceptance for my wish from nobody, furthermore because it is not believed to be a good
occupation for a woman, and because with my grades and intelligence I could have select
whatever different. As you can see, I am still fully determined to follow my dreams, and also to
tell and show as soon as I can to everybody that completion of dreams happens not only to movie
characters, but even to mortals. It takes a lot of risks, determination, courage and self-confidence
to swim upstream when you are sure that is the right direction, but to everybody else it seems
wrong.
I am taking in as much as I can on lectures, investigating and informing myself about new events
and trends on internet, on seminars and conferences, or while I volunteer or travel. I am working
part-time, i.e. if there is a need for tour leader or guide for some tourist group in travel agency.
This is my way to explore the world, to get more work experience, to know more interesting
people and to earn some pocket money. I am practicing sports so that I can withstand all the
physical effort with which I meet on every trip. I am learning foreign languages and I am
embracing every opportunity it shows to me whether it is in my city, or in Belgrade, or on the
other continent, like this one. Maybe I would not be this motivated if I had not experienced the
difficulties from the start.

Far ago I have noticed that people who do their job with love and passion are those who are the
best in it, does not matter if it is official or according to the recipients. There are professors,
doctors, drivers, actors and tour guides who do their job with full heart and everybody else see
that and find it inspiring and enjoyable. And I want to be the best. When you love the work you
do, then it does not matter if you had a lack of sleep, or you had to work overtime or the salary
could have been higher. I know it from myself. We all deserve to be happy and fulfilled, and we
are all tailors of our own destiny.