Hello there! My name is Elli. I’m a girl living in Bavaria (about 1 hour away from Deggendorf) who is half German/half Russian. In October 2019 I started my studies in the bachelor of International Management here at THD, and since then my life changed a lot – like really a lot!

For those of you who don’t have an idea about my study course: In our current semester we are like 60% German people and 40% foreigners. These 40% are a colorful mixture of a lot of different cultures from all around the globe – Mexico, Russia, USA, China, and a lot more!

Before my time in Deggendorf, I would say I was just living a pretty average life – the only exciting thing was that I was travelling a lot. Now that I’m here, my life has turned upside down – in a good way of course!

Not only has student life at THD changed me but meeting these people from all around the world has surely opened my eyes to a life I never knew! First of all, I had the chance to meet a whole bunch of different and interesting cultures; starting with trying Brazilian food (which was like supeeer tasty, I recommend to try!) and ending up with learning some Albanian expressions (faleminderit!).

But that was not the only thing that changed in my life. Besides a lot of amazing and indescribable memories and experiences that I’ve gained in only two semesters, I’ve also learned to value my life more. I had a lot of conversations where people were asking me things like “are you rich?”, only because me and my family are living in a house and not in a small flat. First I was like “what the hell? It’s a normal thing” – but actually, it’s not. I’ve met some people who come to Germany because the living standard here is one of the best that you could imagine. To be honest, I never really thought about how blessed we all really are with the conditions that we have here – but in the past months, I really stopped taking everything for granted and started to be more grateful.

Now, let’s come to the most important aspect (from my point of view): Deggendorf, as well as the (International) students, opened my eyes and made me grow out of myself – and I can’t even describe in words how thankful I am for all the things I’ve learned and experienced here! Since I started to study and live in this cozy little town, I really feel like a more interesting and open-minded person. Even the people around me changed – I started to surround myself with people who make me grow even more, and I swear: It’s the best thing you can do for yourself.

I could continue for hours with telling you how important and valuable it is to be open-minded towards other cultures and people, but I’ll just try to put it all in a nutshell. My life changed in a very positive way after meeting people from so many different cultures, and I can only wish for everyone who reads this to always be open to different people and to make as many experiences as possible. It’s more than just worth it, I promise you! In this sense it’s now time to come to an end, and in this part I want to thank everyone who helped me grow out of my shell and who shared his or her wonderful culture/food/language/experiences/time with me. Even though we all come from different parts of the world, we should always raise each other up and spread positive vibes! If you’ve read this far, thanks for your attention and time. Now leave your screen, go offline and surround yourself with positivity :)

Elli is an International Management student who is 25% German and 75% Russian/Kazakhstan. She is fluent in both languages and also speaks English and French. She is building up her Chinese and Italian skills as we speak. She is passionate about travelling and sports, since she used to do competitive gymnastics. People describe Elli as a positive and enthusiastic person (except when she is hungry or tired).