Victoria Otter

Yonsei University in Seoul, South-Korea

Meet Victoria Otter! Her exchange journey was not a usual one.

She was certain about wanting to spend one semester abroad, and her number one choice was Japan. She had been there before, spoke the language, and felt like it was 100% her fate to return there. Victoria placed South-Korea as her “back-up”, which to her surprise it would become the final destination. It came to her as a shock. But how did that unexpected surprise turn out to be?

In her words Victoria explains:

"I realised, everything happens for a reason. This is just a new chapter. And I can confidently say, the unexpected makes you grow the most. My experience studying in South-Korea was truly wonderful. The university I attended forced me to step out of my comfort-zone, to study subjects I initially thought I would not necessarily be interested in, but actually turned out to completely broaden my interests."

Initially Victoria was a bit biased about the type of students that get drawn to South Korea, her first thought was: Oh it has got to be the K pop fans! But to her surprise the reality of the South Korean country turned out to be a bit different, more dynamic, so to speak. The classes she took at the Korean University made her understand how important it is in education to analyse social mechanisms beyond the traditional western perspective. She expresses the fact that had she only finished the education in Groningen, she would have not understood and learned the perspectives of another country, the phenomena that happens there,in a political and social manner, which in turn provides students with a much bigger and realistic understanding of the world as a whole.

"Experiencing a society from within while studying social topics, really makes you understand a country on a different level. It is fun, and academically very interesting. I feel like this new understanding, I’ve gained, of the country is a very valuable perspective for the rest of my academic career, as I am studying a major related to international politics, relations and law. There’s just a whole new blend of social phenomena you experience first-hand, which you need in order to understand the world and its diversity of cultures."

Being in Korea motivated Victoria to study and work harder, thus it was not a surprise when she started working as a private English tutor in her free time. The culture of South Korea was unique in its own kind, for it pushed Victoria and many other students to stay motivated and driven to achieve more.