"The admissions office had never encountered a business student who had gone on exchange to Nepal – and they were eager to hear more"
Jonathan (26) will soon return to Norway as a fully educated economist after several years of traveling. Here he talks about one of his semesters abroad: Peace and conflict studies in amazing Nepal!
This text is translated using AI.
View the original article here.– I ended up in Nepal after spending a semester abroad in East Asia. At that time, I was motivated to continue experiencing Asia, and Nepal and Kulturstudier seemed like a good next step for both my educational path and personal development.
In addition, I myself have a family connection to the South Asia region, and I wanted to learn more about its history and culture!
As a student with Kulturstudier in Nepal, you quickly become part of a social environment with others who enjoy traveling and want to explore the area.
Usually, a cohort consists of between 20 and 40 Scandinavian students, in addition to some Nepali students.
– Before the programme started, I didn't know any of the fellow students here, but one quickly becomes part of the social environment since all the students live in the same dormitory.
In Nepal, we offer the study program Peace and Conflict Studies.
The study is suitable for you if you are interested in why people act the way they do, the dynamics behind complex conflicts, and want to learn more about non-Western perspectives on violence, war, reconciliation, peace, and pacifism.
Learn more about student life
- Nepal and Sri Lanka
- Student blog
Building a safe house in Pokhara
– The lectures were largely interactive and included topics that we in Norway largely lack knowledge about.
So, here we learned about everything from the historical context of Nepal, the civil war, the caste system, gender equality in the region, and the development work that paved the way for the future in Nepal and the surrounding countries.
These are important perspectives that I believe the Norwegian education system does not sufficiently highlight.
Pokhara offers a pleasant tropical climate with snow-capped mountain peaks a short trip away. The city is both a soft landing for first-time visitors, and an exciting place with many opportunities to become well acquainted with the local culture and way of life:
– Our university town Pokhara is a very tourist-friendly place with many restaurants, bars, and nightlife spots for the whitest of tourists you'll find in Asia!
Here you can, in theory, eat European food 7 days a week and drink Carlsberg while American pop music plays in the background.
Nevertheless, I encourage those who dare to challenge themselves. Explore Nepali restaurants, try out local public transportation, and allocate enough time to experience the Himalayan mountain range, which is located right near Nepal's second largest city.
Kulturstudier also organizes excursions and trips to other parts of Nepal, and students have the opportunity to plan their own trips on weekends or after the teaching period is over:
– Personally, I remember our class trip to Bandipur, which is situated right between Pokhara and Kathmandu, and despite feeling like the bus was going to tumble down the mountain on the way up, I would say that the trip as a whole was incredibly nice.
The city is magnificent, charming, and offers great food, nice hiking opportunities, and beautiful architecture. Bandipur is a very nice destination to travel to if one should tire of the beautiful sunsets along the water in Pokhara.
It is common to feel some concerns beforehand when planning to study abroad.
Everyday life presents different and perhaps greater challenges than one is used to at home, but the experiences from a different daily life and living standards can also be valuable to carry forward:
– The experiences from my semester in Nepal have stayed with me. I learned that one can manage despite unstable internet, cold shower water, and varying access to electricity and air conditioning.
I also learned that it's actually quite liberating to be able to properly disconnect from the Norwegian Instagram bubble!
No matter what kind of education and career path you are planning, a semester abroad can be a valuable addition to your resume.
Both educational institutions and employers value international experience, and with Nepal as your country of study, you will certainly stand out among the crowd of applicants:
– My semester in Nepal was also valued during the application process for the Master's program in Business Administration at Grenoble Ecole De Management in Paris.
The admissions office staff expressed that they had never encountered an economics student who had gone on exchange to Nepal, and they were eager to hear more about it.
– I came in, and now I am approaching the end of my master's degree here in France.
I'm looking forward to returning home after a semester in Nepal, and a total of four years abroad, and I am very pleased with the international experience I've had the opportunity to gain through Kulturstudier!
