by Dalal Boland

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it” – Aristotle

About nine years ago, after graduating from high school, I decided to entertain the thought of becoming an educator. I hadn’t fully accepted the career choice. My parents pushed teaching, but I didn’t like it. It had been my mother’s dream to become a teacher. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to because she was unable to attend university.

I decided to make her dream come true by becoming one myself. When I started taking education courses at my university, the spark of love for education ignited. The rich content about different language theories genuinely excited me. My passion grew the more I worked with the program. I loved learning about how to prepare lesson plans and how language is taught. I knew then that this was the right major for me.

Deciding on Becoming an Educator in Language Education

I decided that, after I got my high school diploma, I would pursue an advanced degree. I spent four years at Gulf University for Science and Technology, located in West Mishref, Kuwait. There, I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English Education.

I was so passionate about studying abroad. Even before graduating from GUST, I began taking the tests needed to get into an American college. This included taking high-stakes English tests for international students. I also needed to take the GRE and apply for scholarships. In addition, I started looking for universities accredited by Kuwait’s Culture Office. I did this by going through the list on their website and writing down application deadlines in order not to miss the dates.

Preparing for Admission for Ten Universities

After taking the tests, I started applying. I applied to more than ten universities. Ultimately, I received five acceptance letters. I had to make a choice of which university I would attend. I decided to attend Florida State University. There, I overcame a seemingly endless number of obstacles before and after joining FSU. Nonetheless, I have earned my Masters of Science in Curriculum and Instruction with a major in Foreign and Second Language Education — the major that I am most passionate about. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to pursue education as a career, even if I had originally been forced!

If you have any questions about living, studying or traveling abroad take a look at our question and answer forum. We also have an online Facebook community that will surely connect you with other like-minded travelers.