常速英语:Having a Double Major Keeps Satenik Busy at Utah State University

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Having an opportunity to come to the United States in high school was Satenik Sargsyan's initial exposure to studying in the U-S. “Well first of all I was an exchange student, an high school exchange student in the United States before and I went back home after a year in the United States I went to college there and then I learned about this program, this scholarship that was offered to Armenian students to come and study in the United States and I have always thought of the United States as a country of great opportunities and I decided to take a shot and come and study here.”

studying at Utah State University is far from home for Satenik. “I’m from Armenia. It is a tiny dot on the map. It’s Eastern Europe, sometimes considered Western Asia, sometimes Middle East, but it is a beautiful country with a lot of culture and a lot of traditions,” she says. “I am going to Utah State University. I am double majoring in Political Science and print Journalism and minor in French and I‘ve have not regretted for a second for coming and studying here.”

Choosing Journalism and Political Science as her majors came easy for Satenik due to the fact she enjoys talking and getting to know people. “I was studying Journalism back home and it’s something that I am good at. I know I am good at writing. I am good at communication and I really, really enjoy communicating, socializing with people,” she says. “I could never see myself as a Computer Science major, Business major because numbers at boring to me I just love communicating with people and talking to people and I figured that Political Science and Journalism would both be good majors for that.”

With the workload Satenik has pursing two majors; she says it all will be worth it in the end. “I’ve always seen the United States as a country of opportunities and here I go to college and I realize that it is going to pay me back and what I am learning here is maybe the tuition, maybe to go to school in another place, another country would be less expensive, but the education is really worth it and I realize that after all it is going to pay me back for all my hard work and all the money that my sponsors are putting in for my education, it is going to pay me back in the end.”

Satenik also says just the difference in the education system here versus back home is another reason why studying here is for her. “Well, the education system the college system is totally different.  Back home we go to school for let’s say four months and then we have all of our exams at the end and we have maybe one exam in the middle of the semester and here I am constantly busy,” she says.

“I would say here it is not hard, college is just very time consuming and if one wants to get good grades then one should really put their time into it.   So that would be one difference. It is very time consuming whereas I would say back home the studies would be more based on theory and here it’s more of a hands on learning experience. It’s the practice that matters and of course the environment is different as well.”

Graduation for Satenik takes place in two years, 2011 and what's next consist of ... “I’m thinking about going to Law school. I would for sure love to go to one of the Ivy League schools here if I get the chance,” she says. “I was also thinking about going and studying in France. So, I am going into Law I have decided that for myself and we will just see what happens.”

Satenik's advice to other students.....“I would tell them don’t be afraid to try. If you win you get to study in a great country with many opportunities open for everyone. If you lose at least you gain experience and learn how to do better the next time,” she says. “I think if you have a goal nothing should stop you from achieving it. All you have to do is just try.”