Selleana Patrice Sankar
A GUSEGG Summer School participant from Trinidad and Tobago
My best memories of the University of Graz? Everything! As a student of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, hailing from the warmth of the Caribbean islands, I experienced my first international journey to Europe when I participated in the Graz International Summer School Seggau (GUSEGG) in 2018, and it was undoubtedly the best decision and experience of my academic and professional life thus far! I was honored to be selected for publication in the Off Campus: Seggau School of Thought Volume 4 (2020) and received my certificate and 6ECTS credits (4.0 GPA) after engaging in lectures, seminars, networking opportunities with international students and lecturers and other extra-curricular activities during my stay at the beautiful and mesmerizing Seggau Castle, Leibnitz.
Every day as a student of the University of Graz was profoundly fulfilling (including the fun-filled days when we danced the Macarena!). And so, whilst it is difficult to choose my best memory- because all of it is very close to my heart, I would say the day we all journeyed to the cities of Graz and Maribor, walking the beautiful, cobbled streets with the joys of newly made friends from all over the globe including Canada, Benin (Africa), and China (to name only a few), and so many other places- all of us on an exciting quest for knowledge in a distant and foreign- yet comfortable land.
This experience was certainly the impetus which led me after GUSEGG was completed, for research in other cities in Austria, France, Germany, and even Poland whilst on my visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau, Warsaw, Kraków, and so many other significant historical sites of our world history! Whilst on these journeys, I relished in the delight of European cuisine- which though shocking from my Caribbean tastebuds (pepper), was another element of delightful surprise which I remember fondly. From Styria’s award-winning pumpkin seed oil (on almost anything delicious!), to the enchanting pierogi (which I ate literally every day at some point in Poland). Needless to say, from academic fulfillment to social engagements and even the delight of new cultural experiences, being a student of the University of Graz has significantly impacted and helped shape me into the determined and highly motivated young woman I am today.