Freshman Year: Welcome to Franklin!
At the beginning of my adventure at Franklin University Switzerland, I must admit that although I was excited about this new phase in life, I felt overwhelmed by the cultural and language barriers. As a student with Italian origins, the language was my first most significant obstacle to overcome. I felt insecure and misunderstood most of the time, but pulled up my sleeves and embraced these feelings as strengths to improve my English competencies. It did not take very long till I started thinking and dreaming in English - quite a weird feeling at first, but I soon became fluent and comfortable with speaking it daily.
However, English was not the only challenge my freshman journey was about, as there were many ups and downs I had to conquer. At a certain point, I also didn’t feel qualified enough, so the thought of changing university did cross my mind more than once. Nevertheless, as the determined person I am, I encouraged myself to believe in my qualities. I pushed those barriers forward with discipline and consistency. Finally, I became conscious of my potential and learned to trust my abilities! Thanks to the Franklin professors, staff, and friends, I learned to adapt to different situations and struggles. My advisors were incredibly helpful during these moments because they believed in me even before I did. They advised and supported me not solely in courses and classes, but also in life! They were my biggest supporters, like the rest of the warm international community at Franklin: a family you will hold close to you forever!
Sophomore Year: Embracing the Falcon spirit!
Already on track, I finally declared my major in Communication and Media Studies, with minors in Marketing, Psychology, Art History & Visual Culture. during my freshman year, I was truly convinced I would end up majoring in International Management with an emphasis in Marketing, but then I realized I needed to listen to my heart instead of the market. Choosing passions and embracing my personal strengths were always the best choices I made during these years at Franklin, and the professors were supportive of letting me discover my talents through the different elective classes and courses I took.
At that point, my path became clearer: I wanted to create a narrative along my journey at Franklin University Switzerland, including all academic, working, and social experiences! Therefore, I started to get more involved in extracurricular activities, stepping out of my comfort zone, and meeting new people. My first leadership position was as Admissions Ambassador, which allowed me to share my experience with current and future students and establish connections and friendships with them. Still, my contribution and impact were not enough, so I decided to also become an Italian tutor by helping my fellow classmates in learning more about Italian culture, language, and more. The biggest golden rule I tried to share with others is “try it out and don’t be sorry" - nobody is going to judge you for trying your best! Failures are the biggest lessons and yet achievements! Learning a new language and culture is exhausting, but it is the most unexpected and rewarding gift you can give yourself!
Junior Year: Keep grinding…
During my third year, I repeated the learnings and benefits of my past hard work and efforts. I got busier and busier, receiving back new knowledge, competencies, and a lot of satisfaction. All the pieces of my narrative were finally fitting perfectly together! At that point, I felt the necessity to challenge myself even further, so I landed an internship in the city of Lugano and started networking also outside the bubble of Franklin. For almost a year now, I have been working for DataLimits, an NGO association that addresses the global “digital disregard” of data privacy rights. Finding this internship was a blessing because COVID-19 did not make it easy. As a communication and marketing specialist at DataLimits, I have the opportunity to experience and learn up close all about the legal world of privacy. With the hands-on experience of the internship, and the possibility to expand this passion with the Communication and Media Department, I finally figured out this is the career I want to pursue in life!
Despite this achievement, my junior year was less exciting than the past ones, especially due to the global pandemic. I do however have bittersweet memories of it because in between online classes and quarantines I was still able to reinforce friendships, dedicating more time to nurturing these relationships. It was an incredible bonding experience that I was not expecting: the difficulties brought us at Franklin together and taught us to be a resilient, positive, and adaptive community in the face of any circumstance.
Senior Year: Creating new horizons…
Looking back at it all, I am proud of the achievements and failures (always a lesson learned!) I have encountered during these past four years. It has not been all fun and games, but I have grown as an individual as well as a global citizen. Personal growth is a lifelong process of development that unlocks endless possibilities and potential. My transformational and self-improvement process started at Franklin but is still ongoing today. Personal and professional improvement, maturity, and success have all been deeply impacted. On the Franklin campus, I have actively learned to motivate myself and to operate also outside of comfortable situations, balancing my internal and external doubts and struggles. Thanks to Franklin University Switzerland, I have found the knowledge and experience I need to get closer to my ideal self!
Taking the first step is always a difficult part of any new process or adventure, but believing in yourself and persevering through it all is definitely harder. Franklin is just the beginning… These four years have passed so quickly and I am looking forward to seeing what new excitements life will bring me after graduation this Spring ‘22!
A big thank you to the Falcons!
With love,
Letizia Stefani '22