Originally from South Africa, Malaika Jumah, a Kaunas University of Technology New Media Language student has lived in America, Lithuania and now – in Spain. After an exchange semester in a Spanish coastal town in Galicia, she is convinced that travelling for studies makes you grow.
Malaika decided to go to Spain for an academic exchange because she was struggling with the Spanish module of her second foreign language. “I knew I needed to be around people that spoke the language,” says the New Media Language student at the KTU Faculty of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities.
Malaika admits that at first, she had a lot of doubts: she was most worried about having to adjust to life abroad again. However, living in America and Lithuania has taught her how to navigate new countries and cultures, and a semester in Spain has even broadened that experience.
Only good memories
Studying in Spain for Malaika was a challenging but unique learning experience. According to the student, the lecturers would sometimes start teaching in Spanish in the middle of the lecture and only a small part of the optional modules were taught in English.
At the Spanish university, she took language classes, which she enjoyed very much, but the most memorable module for Malaika was phonology. “Because there were many aspects of forensic linguistics specifically in the exams,” she explains.
The student says that the experience was amazing and the city of A Coruña, where she studied, is very peaceful. “If you felt down, there were beach activities available,” says Malaika. She’s also happy she met different people from all over the world and made wonderful friends with students from Brazil.
The internship provided different lessons
KTU New Media Language student admits that the language barrier was a shock at first, but by the end of the exchange, she was able to communicate freely. “I learned so much just being in a city that doesn’t speak much English. I’m grateful that it wasn’t too international as I don’t think I would have learned much Spanish,” says a KTU student from South Africa.
The linguistics student also had the opportunity to do an internship in Catalonia, Spain. Malaika shares that she chose the internship as a reception assistant at a resort hotel because she wanted to gain professional experience and learn some of the peculiarities between Spanish and English languages. The internship presented different challenges but was also very rewarding.
“It was hard to meet the expectations of every guest. Also, my Spanish is not fluent, so I struggled with that. I learned a lot of key skills especially when it comes to differences in communicating with people from many countries,” says Malaika.
Experiencing cultural differences – from sports to siesta
What she has noticed while travelling, is a difference between communities in terms of sports they like: South Africans like rugby, Lithuanians like basketball, and Spaniards like football. “South African fans support the teams and are passionate about it. Lithuania has basketball and I’ve never seen fans that are as passionate and as interested as they are. In Spain, football dominated especially in the city I studied in. It’s cool to see how sports can unite people all over the world,” says Malaika, who has a background in professional sports herself.
She used to compete in figure skating competitions as a child and now skates every week to relieve stress: “In Spain, there was no ice rink where I was studying but I brought my inline skates and skated along the beach regularly”.
Due to the hot climate in Spain, especially in summer, Spaniards have an afternoon siesta time when no one is working. Malaika admits that having a few hours free in the middle of the day was strange and that most of the time she spent these afternoons sleeping or going to the beach.
Planning to go on exchange? Be open-minded about the experience
Students often have certain expectations before they go on exchange, but Malaika reveals that it was not the case for her: “It was my second year, so I had an open mindset and was ready to work hard. I was excited to be in a coastal city since I’m from Cape Town.”
Malaika advises students planning to go on an exchange: “Enjoy your experience and time abroad because it doesn’t last forever. Always be open to meeting new people and treat them well, no matter their background. If the exchange is difficult, know that it doesn’t last forever – the experience builds you up to be a stronger person.”
Malaika is very happy with KTU’s international student community. She says that it is very large and friendly, and she actively takes in various events. “It’s very easy to meet new people”, says the student. As she has always been passionate about sports, after graduating from the New Media Language programme she would like to work in the sports business or sports media.
Want to see the world, get new knowledge and learn languages while studying for your degree? Go for study exchange! If you want to go in the spring semester, don’t miss the deadline in September. For more information, visit this page.
