Victoria Obisesan
UMBC Exchange: Newcastle University
Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Pre-Departure Post #1
Hey Everyone!
My name is Victoria Obisesan and I am a sophomore majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. I am sitting on my couch writing this post only a few hours before I leave for the airport and head off to Newcastle. I have a connecting flight from Dublin to Newcastle which I find exciting because I have always wanted to see Ireland and even if it’s from the Dublin airport today, I’ll take it!
Since being introduced to the Education Abroad Office my freshman year, I have wanted to go abroad. My cousin went to France for a semester and she loved it, so I wanted to give it a try as well. I quickly realized that I needed to plan way in advance since I did not want to fall behind in my chemistry courses since I can only take them in the U.S. as I was told by my advisor who then set me up on a plan to take all of Organic Chemistry and finish ASL during the Summer 2025 sessions. While it was extremely stressful going from school to work nearly every single day, I am grateful that I saw it through and can now travel without the fear of having to catch up!
Originally, I was between three universities for the exchange program. I had wanted to go to Japan with my friend Maranna, who is there right now so shout-out to her and go check out her blog posts! However, my major would not fit well there. So that left me between Newcastle University and the University of Galway. I think what really pushed me towards Newcastle was the ability to go watch a Premier League game. Especially since Newcastle United’s stadium is about a 10-minute walk from campus and I have enjoyed playing soccer, or I mean football,l my whole life. I even joined the Women’s Soccer Club here, which I think more people should try out for, it’s loads of fun yet still competitive.
That being said, I am really going to miss my schedule. Knowing I would see my friends three times a week at practice, during classes, or just run into them on campus. We could easily meetup in the dorms or after classes and the fact that I won’t be able to experience that for about 4 and a half months is crazy to me.
I am quite nervy about the flight and just studying abroad in general. This will be my first flight since 2019, my first ever flight alone and to Europe for that matter, which I cannot tell if I am more excited or nervous for. So much preparation since the application time until now has gone into this experience.
This past weekend, leading up to my departure, has been full of me hanging out with friends, finishing my packing (just finished it today), and doing my hair. I have been doing my hair since forever, but it feels like it does not get any easier. Hours upon hours are spent braiding, but I am especially proud of how it turned out this time since I opted for a boho style. I set up in the bathroom and surprisingly my friend Jesse came by to help me and keep me company while I did my hair! It took me about a whole day to do but I think it was worth it. Within Saturday and Sunday, I went ice skating, had dinner with friends, went to the mall twice in one day, visited my friend at her job, and made a snow angel in said friend’s front yard! It wasn’t until late Sunday night that I finally returned back to my house and said a final and quite saddening goodbye to my friends which I will have to repeat in just a few hours to my family before I embark on this journey.
Well, that is all for now, thanks for keeping up with me and talk to you later!