Stories

The NSLI-Y program languages include Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Indonesian, Hindi, Korean, Persian (Tajiki), Russian and Turkish. Listed below are all multimedia stories written, and shared by NSLI-Y students, alumni, partners, and supporters. These stories include all NSLI-Y program languages and are ordered chronologically from the most recent post.

Alumni and current students, join the conversation by submitting your own story.

Click on a language below to see stories and media related to a specific NSLI-Y program language:

Displaying stories from 2019.

Treasure poses with her host sister in a restaurant

Korean

An Open Letter to My Host Sister

Treasure is from Washington D.C. and participated in the 2019 Korean Summer Program in South Korea. To 황금빛, Study abroad is a challenge in and of itself....
Sarah posing in front of a Taiwanese cityscape

Chinese (Mandarin)

The Sounds of Chaishan (柴山的聲音）

Noah is from Plano, TX and participated in the 2018-19 Chinese (Mandarin) Academic Year program in Taiwan. In Taiwan, I spent most of my time at the university...
An image of Claire on a path in Korea

Korean

NSLI-Y Broken Down: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners in Korea

Claire is from Atlanta, GA and participated in the 2019 Korean Summer Program in South Korea.
AJ poses with his NSLI-Y cohort in Moldova

Russian

Crashing Chisinau: My Summer in Moldova

AJ is from Elk River, MN and participated in the Russian Summer Program 2019 in Moldova. AJ has always enjoyed learning about languages and linguistics. The fi...
Shivam poses in front of a crowd of people in China

Chinese (Mandarin)

My Experience in China / 我在中国的经历

Shivam is from Saratoga, CA and participated in the Chinese Summer program 2019 in China. As exciting as the prospect of studying abroad for an extended period ...
A banner that reads "Celebrating underrepresented stories abroad" and shows an image of NSLI-Y students sitting on a bench.

Chinese (Mandarin)

Pablo Gutierrez: Setting the Tone for Language Learning

Pablo Gutierrez's music teacher gave him his first introduction to Chinese language and culture. To further this interest, he attended Mandarin Startalk summe...
A banner that reads "celebrating underrepresented stories abroad" and shows an image of Natalie in China

Chinese (Mandarin)

Rewarding Challenges: Natalie in China

Natalie Johnson was raised in Milwaukee. As a child, she developed an interest in East Asia through her passion for anime. During her junior year of high school...
A banner that reads "celebrating underrepresented stories abroad" and shows Nicholas sitting with his peers in Morocco

Arabic

Bringing Down Barriers: Nicholas in Morocco

Nicholas Wade's future changed unexpectedly when he met a Foreign Service Officer at a career fair during his freshman year of high school. She described to h...
Images of Shraddha in Morocco with her peers, in a restaurant, and on a street

Arabic

Identity, Nationality, and Community in Morocco

Shraddha is from Round Rock, TX and is participating in the NSLI-Y Arabic Academic Year 2019-2020 in Morocco. "American" hmmm, but where are you really from...