Turkey and Everything Before

Hello my lovely readers!

Hope it's been a wonderful week for you, as it has for me.  As I said, I didn't do much last week, I was hoping to be more productive, but...

Anyway, so this is a post that I really wanted to write.  This post will describe how I am going to Turkey, virtually for free, why Turkey and how I found out about exchange programs in general.  So here we go.

I guess my first experience with learning that I wanted to be an exchange student, was the end of my sophomore year.  Rotary exchange came and gave a presentation.  I really liked it and really wanted to do it, but I couldn't because it was to late to apply and go abroad as a junior.  I didn't think much of it, because that summer we were going to Portugal.  At that time it was an idea that I excepted that wasn't going to happen.  I also could have easily applied for a different program my senior year, but I really wanted to graduate with my class, I can't explain why, I just did.  

It started last April, I don't know why or how, or what was going through my head, but I decided to look up gap year programs, I really wanted to go on a gap year and thought it was a great opportunity for me.  I spent so much time looking for an affordable program and found one.  I wrote an essay, consisting of financial proof as to why my dad should let me go on a gap year exchange program.  Unfortunately I missed one very important and expensive financial detail unique to our family situation.  The point was that I couldn't study abroad for a year after I graduated high school and I could only go abroad in the summer if it was free.  This wasn't the end, though, it was just the beginning.

When I first started searching is when I started reading exchange blogs.  Even though I couldn't go abroad, I still kept reading blogs, all summer long and even when school started again.  In September I was reading a blog, from the beginning and the girl made a post about all these free exchange programs.  One of them included NSLI-Y.  When I found out that NSLI-Y had summer programs that were open to high school graduates, I asked my dad if I could apply.  Both of my parents let me apply because they thought there was no way I could get it.  If you're reading this and thinking about applying for NSLI-Y do it, but be aware it is a really competitive scholarship.

To those of you who don't know NSLI-Y offers programs in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Persian (Tajik), Russian, and Turkish.  On your application you are allowed to put down your top three choices.  Why did I put down Turkish as my first choice?  I wasn't really that interested in Chinese, Korean or Russian while I would love to visit those places I didn't really want to go right now.  I also feel I wouldn't be ready for Hindi because English is so common in India, I thought it'd be really easy for me to use English if I was frustrated.  Anyway, so that leaves Arabic, Persian and Turkish.  I'm not sure why, but I didn't put down Arabic as one of my choices at the time.  My dad told me to put down Turkish as my first choice, I put down Persian as my second and any as my third.  I put down Persian because I really want to visit remote places and Tajikistan is so remote, but I am so glad to be going to Turkey and so excited.

Obviously, I applied, but it wasn't that simple.  Before I did the NSLI-Y application, I had to finish all of my early action college application.  I think I submitted my application, the day before it was due. Anyway, my essays weren't as good as they could have been because I did them last minute.  Then I waited.

During this time of waiting, I read NSLI-Y blogs.  Reading these blogs didn't help much.  Everyone who wrote a blog seemed to have more international and/or language experience than I did.  That made me really nervous.  However on December 18, 2012.  I got an e-mail saying I was selected as a semi-finalist.  I was so happy.

Again, for those of you who don't know, if your selected as a NSLI-Y semi-finalist you have an interview, which counts for 20 per-cent.  I had been doing interviews with colleges all year, so I think I was prepared.  Anyway, the interview itself was interesting.  To be honest that was the only interview I had where I wasn't sure how well it went.  After the interview I was expecting not to get NSLI-Y, not because of the interview, I just wasn't expecting to get a NSLI-Y scholarship.  Because I wasn't expecting to get NSLI-Y and I really wanted to go abroad, I applied for two full scholarships to go to Japan with YFU-USA.

After my NSLI-Y interview I waited.  If you ever become an exchange student, be prepared to wait, a lot.  Thankfully I had a lot to distract me during this wait.  Then on March 25th, 2013, my dad called me from school and said "Congratulations you're going to Turkey!".  I was so excited.  After that I cancelled my YFU application.  And started writing this blog.

That's pretty much the story.  I just wanted my readers, especially if you are thinking or will apply for NSLI-Y  next year to do it.  Yes it is competitive and be prepared not to get it, but if you really want it, you can and will get it.

With that being said, I have eight days left before I leave.  I'm not sure when I'll be posting next, if I will post this week, again, or next week.  I do promise to write another post before I leave.  And since I'm feeling productive I want to go through everything today, so I can just worry about packing.  I also need to learn more Turkish.

That's about it for now.  As always thanks for reading.

Till next time,
-Sarah