Alum University Talks
By Petia Ivanova '97
Who could be a better source of up-to-date first-hand information on a college or university but someone currently studying there who on top of that is an ACS graduate, so basically having a high-school experience in common with you?
At ACS, we are lucky to have alumni who, while being in Bulgaria for the holidays, drop by with the kind assistance of our college counselors, and present their new schools abroad to interested ACSers in a semi-formal environment where one can ask as good as anything on their heart.
From Victoria Angelova ’14, currently in her second year of studying Economics and Computer Science at Wellesley College, we learned that women-only classes can feel liberating and even lead to the less outspoken students participating more, thus getting more out of an academic course. Should you miss boys, academically speaking, you can always cross-register for a course at MIT, Babson, Brandeis, or Olin College. I found Victoria’s clear explanation of the differences between US liberal arts colleges and big universities especially useful. Briefly, while big universities, such as great Harvard, have 21,000 students in total, including grad students, while colleges like Wellesley have just a little under 2,500 students (undergrads only), making it possible for professors to know each of their students personally. If you are looking to get individual attention as a student, it would probably be wiser to go for a college. Another curious fact that Victoria shared was that there is a Bulgarian lady working for the Wellesley admissions office who feels passionate about Bulgarian applicants. Last but not least, the wonderful city of Boston with its rich history and culture is close by for weekend trips.
Tomislava Tomova ’15 is only in her first year at the American University of Paris (AUP), but already eager to spread the good word of her new school and its most beautiful of all locations, the city of Paris itself. The AUP campus buildings are situated on several locations within one of Paris’ districts but the Eiffel Tower itself is Tomislava’s view from most university buildings and classrooms and is just a three-minute walk away. When talking about a world-famous artist and their work, AUP students taking art classes simply go and see the work at the Louvre Museum, Musee d"Orsay or any other museum in Paris. Tomislava has had a wonderful start to her first year, already being appointed the deputy editor of the university's television Peacock TV and getting an interview assignment from the BBC. At AUP, one does not need French for their academic work, Tomislava assured some of the interested students who were a little uneasy about not having studied French so far. Visiting the university and its admissions office as an eleventh-grader has been helpful for Tomislava and may have been in her favor, too, she believes. Small classroom size (15-20 students per class) makes for more individual attention, another pro. Still, in a class with 14 other students, one could easily have representatives of 15 different countries. So a few months into her first year, she is happy to have made friends from all over the world whom she already looks forward to going back to in a couple of days!
As always, stay tuned for updates from your College Counseling Office on more university presentations coming up at ACS!