Zoe – Zagreb School of Economics and Management – Croatia
Semester 2, 2022
Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Laws (Honours)
My exchange experience was an experience that I will cherish for my entire life. It not only allowed me to broaden my studies and give me exposure to the business and law practices in an international environment, but it also did wonders for my personal advancement.
Firstly, I undertook 7 subjects which were all beneficial in different ways. The subjects which were most informative were ‘legal environment of business,’ ‘e-business,’ and ‘personal finance.’ Specifically, legal environment of business exposed me to legal and business structures in an international sense which was enlightening, interesting and informative and will undoubtably assist me in my studies and career moving forward.
Living overseas taught me invaluable life lessons pertaining to organisation, independence, resilience and confidence. Further, I found true friends from all corners of the worlds, which redefined the whole concept of friendship for me. I travelled to 24 different European countries, during my stay, which allowed me to experience many different cultures and ways of life which was undeniably eye opening. Some cultures/experiences made me realise how lucky I was to call Australia home. I was also able to further my Croatian language abilities which has always been a lifelong goal of mine.
My exchange redefined my career path. After learning about EU law practice at ZSEM, hearing about various corrupt governmental systems in eastern Europe, and doing multiple war history tours and museums, my passion and career focus has shifted from family law to international law. I am now applying for internships in the EU for the United Nations, and I am hoping to intern at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia later this year.
Most importantly, the exchange made me fall in love with my independence and with myself. I can now confidently say that, in the future, I am equipped with the skills to navigate and deal with any situation I may find myself in. I am confident in myself, and my abilities and I love myself, thanks to this exchange. Unfortunately and fortunately, this exchange has made me even more eager to travel the world and has solidified my dream to have a legal career in Europe.
However, I am grateful to call Australia home and I am grateful that I am permanently at QUT as a student. The reason for this is that European universities do not have as high standards as Australian universities. I found my studies in Zagreb easier than my studies in Australia. To be frank, this was excellent as it allowed me to fully experience all exchange opportunities which arose (rather than merely studying). I am grateful that my studies at QUT really challenge me and teach me, it made me realise that I have a lot more knowledge and experience pertaining to my degree then someone in Europe who has studied for the same degree and for the same amount of time.
The exchange also allowed me to help people with their English-speaking abilities, I did not realise that people who learnt English throughout their entire schooling and university life; still struggle with sentences and words. Therefore, I was able to help my European exchange friends further their English speaking.
I encouraged many people to pursue an exchange semester in Brisbane at QUT and I am currently helping some European colleagues to apply. I will continue to encourage anyone who I come across to do an exchange. It has changed my life in more ways than I can count. I will be happy to assist QUT in any way to further promote exchange opportunities as I will forever be indebted to QUT for allowing me to partake on this once in a life time experience.
Thank you QUT.
Find out how you can apply for exchange via the QUT Student Exchange website.
