The Doyle Engaging Difference Program - Georgetown University

When I had a chance to talk about my study abroad experience, I inevitably asked, “Which one?” As an international student for over three years now, I have been studying abroad since freshman year. I have spent the majority of years away from home, only returning briefly during summer and winter breaks.

This spring 2024 semester, my long-awaited dream of studying on the main campus came true as I embarked on the semester-long study abroad program at the Hilltop. Being one of my favorite semesters, not only did the Georgetown main campus have everything I found worthwhile to call the university a home, but so did the wider Washington, DC, area. Whether it was taking bicycle rides down the Potomac River with friends and enjoying the beautiful scenery unfolding at every sunset, studying on the Healy lawn as the cold winter months subsided giving way to the warmth of the spring, or lining up hours in advance to attend the speech at Gaston Hall by Boris Johnson, it is such things that made my semester abroad experience unforgettable.

In the classroom, the opportunity to take courses from practitioners in the field and attend lectures where professors speak directly from their years of experience, sharing personal anecdotes rather than textbook examples, is invaluable. It was not only a semester filled with tons of newly gained knowledge, experiences, and cherished memories of making new friends, but also an opportunity to engage my creativity and push beyond my immediate major requirements, taking free electives in photography and public speaking, which turned out to be some of my favorite courses. Capturing the spring break with trips to Philadelphia, New Jersey, Manhattan, and Brooklyn through the viewfinder of my camera while making unforgettable memories with my friends—it is small details such as these that will make me forever cherish my semester at Georgetown.

Despite a semester filled with tons of new experiences as I navigated through American culture and witnessed some of the most beautiful sceneries and architecture, whether it be on or off-campus while traveling around DC or other states, there were still bits of the Qatari campus missing throughout. I recall first stepping foot into Georgetown University in Qatar three years ago, filled with anticipation and excitement for what was to come in my undergraduate journey. As someone who has spent most of her life in Tbilisi, Georgia, a small Caucasus nation with a population of 4 million people and a relatively homogenous religious makeup of Orthodox Christians, I knew that whatever was coming would be drastically different from what I had known. Qatar is a majority-Muslim nation and boasts of one of the most diverse populations in the world, where over 85% of the citizens are expats from other countries primarily from the Middle East and North Africa region, as well as South and Southeast Asia.

There is no better place to attend university than Georgetown in Qatar if one wants to experience a true cultural multiversity. Having 60% of the international student body coming predominantly from the Global South, with 500 students in total, creates closeness, allowing one to feel like part of one big family that does not know nationality, race, religion, or language barriers. Despite being Georgian, African night was my favorite cultural celebration of the entire year. I got to witness some of the best music and dance performances, as well as tasting various cuisines from the continent.

Not only is the richness evident in the cultural celebrations but also in the classroom discussions. If I would have attended the DC campus for all four years, I would not have grasped the complexity and nuanced standpoint with which Global South countries approach the majority of foreign and domestic policy matters, which often lack nuance in the traditional Western media.

If I look closely, I cannot help but see the traces of my home in those of others. Whether it is in "disputes" among neighboring countries over which country invented hummus or more serious matters such as my Palestinian friends sharing the pain caused by displacement from their homeland—all these minor details are seemingly distinct to each geographic location and yet so strangely familiar. After witnessing a wealth of perspectives on the Doha campus, I can no longer look at the news without seeing the people whom it affects. It is impossible to stay indifferent in such instances.

While I have never been stronger in my faith and identity as an Orthodox Christian, nevertheless the more I grow in my faith and the more time I spend abroad, there is one thing that continues to grow. My understanding of how, despite our differences, we all share similar beliefs, hopes, and fears, irrespective of what religion, political ideology, or ethnicity we subscribe to. This has ever increased the compassion I carry for everyone.

Doha and DC have become homes to me in very different senses of words and I am forever grateful for that. After all, it is the places one least expects that turn out to be the most cherished ones.