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Hello! My name is Isobel and I am a fourth year student (a finalist) of Modern and Medieval Languages. I did an open application to Cambridge for Spanish and Russian ab-initio and was serendipitously allocated to 51������. Whilst a complete accident that I ended up here, Medwards is by far (in my humble opinion) the best college in Cambridge. From the welcoming and supportive atmosphere to its unique architecture and surroundings, the college is a community that has a real desire to see each other succeed, and to help along the way if we can. 

For my final year, I have chosen to specialise in Russian for my language papers, but I am still keeping in touch with the Spanish side by doing a Latin American literature paper. I can honestly say I have no regrets about choosing this degree, although intense, learning Russian from scratch has been incredibly rewarding. My favourite part about the MMLL Tripos is the option of being able to do an “Intro to” paper in your second year and your fourth year. This gives you the opportunity to pick up another language completely from scratch and learn it for a year whilst also studying a sample of its literature, from classic texts to contemporary ones. In my second year I did an Introduction to Polish and this year I’m doing an Introduction to Portuguese. The MMLL Tripos also offers a diverse range of papers to choose from, so you can really personalise your degree and choose what interests you most. 

Aside from my degree, I love making the most of cultural and academic events that are happening in Cambridge. The Slavonic Studies section organises talks and presentations of visiting academics during term time which I try to attend. Every term I look forward to attending our in-college languages society, the Gabe Society, and at the last meeting I had the chance to do a presentation on my Year Abroad project to my peers and the college’s fellows. It was nice to be able to share something I was passionate about and had spent such a lot of time researching. Aside from academics, I make sure to spend time with friends and make the most of my (dwindling) student days. Cambridge is not all work and no play, and maintaining one’s mental health and sense of self is incredibly important. 

The Year Abroad

The Year Abroad is what initially attracted me to the degree; I love discovering the unknown, the unfamiliar. I chose to split mine between a Spanish-speaking country and a Russian-speaking country: I spent 5 months in Bogotá, Colombia undertaking an internship at the British-Colombian Chamber of Commerce, and I then spent 6 months In Kazakhstan studying Russian at Maqsut Narikbayev University, and also travelling around Kazakhstan and its neighbours, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. 

Whilst the primary goal of the Year Abroad is to improve your language skills, there are countless other benefits: increased self confidence and self assurance, greater cultural awareness, lifelong personal connections to name a few. Conquering the everyday can seem like a Herculean task when you first arrive, however with patience and perseverance you will discover the great happiness and satisfaction that can be derived from successfully asking for the correct bus ticket. 

Whilst I could write for days about the wild and wonderful things I experienced in these countries, I shall keep it brief. Many of my highlights were definitely culinary (beshbarmak, plov, arroz de coco, lulada). The single best thing of the Year Abroad for me personally, was meeting people with vastly different lives and experiences to my own and discovering that, at the end of the day, we are more alike than we are different. I know for some the prospect of living in an unfamiliar country alone may be anxiety inducing, however I promise that the challenge is worth it. The world is vast, yes, but that means that there is all the more to discover.