Aiming abroad

An eighth-grade CA summer trip to Oxford University proved pivotal for Esra Balkas, triggering a longstanding desire to attend college abroad. She was immediately taken by Oxford’s beautiful campus and academic gravitas. A huge Tolkien fan, she loved the idea of attending her idol’s alma mater, of studying in the same hallowed halls in which he used to teach.

Practically, Balkas knew she wanted to study anthropology or international relations. These were passions she had discovered and explored thanks to CA’s flexible curriculum and the guidance of Upper School social sciences teacher Maret Jones.

Beyond academics, Balkas sought a school in an urban center and one with a large international student population, a desire borne out of her participation in the Student Global Leadership Initiative.

“SGLI was a huge thing for me. I learned so much from the other students in the program that were from all over the world—not just academically, but more broadly,” explains Balkas. “It changed how I looked at a lot of things in life. I wanted to go somewhere that offered a similar experience at the collegiate level.”

When an early and initially-disappointing rejection came from Oxford, Balkas shifted gears. She applied to the London School of Economics, another school that checked all her boxes.

“I applied on a whim,” recalls Balkas. “I was familiar with LSE’s anthropology program and had already written the application for the United Kingdom school system. I submitted my application two hours before the deadline closed. I didn’t even tell my parents or college counselor that I was applying. LSE is very competitive; I didn’t expect to get in.”
To her surprise, Balkas received a conditional acceptance weeks later. If she aced three of her AP exams, she was in.

Daunted, but determined, she redoubled her commitment to her academics. “It was hard. When all my friends were cruising, I was buckling down to study.”Her efforts paid off and she was officially admitted into the anthropology program at LSE in 2017. Since arriving on campus, she’s been immersed in her field, enjoying the close-knit community, and taking a full load of anthropology classes.

“At LSE, we’re offered only one elective credit per year—everything else is within the anthropology department” explains Balkas. “Because of the intensive focus, my program is only three years. We go deep from the outset and get out fast.”

She’s making the most of her small classes, which offer ample opportunities for hands-on learning, collaboration, and engagement with senior faculty. It’s an environment that has pushed her out of her comfort zone and helped her grow.

“I had initially thought I wanted a larger school,” explains Balkas. “I’m kind of shy and thought that it would be nice to blend into a huge class. That’s not possible at LSE, where the classes are capped at 12-14 people. It has pushed me to participate more, to be more confident.”

A field work unit completed during her second year has been a highlight of her time so far. “It was a crash course in becoming an anthropologist,” she explains. “You are given freedom to design a project, research it independently, and write an essay to share your findings.” Balkas—a self-described “nerd” who loves video games—chose to observe a popular e-sports team in London to explore how players use language, including gamer tags and gaming lingo, to construct their online identities and build community.

For Balkas, her experience abroad at LSE is all that she hoped it would be. “London is an incredible city and LSE is right in its heart, just a twenty-minute walk to Buckingham Palace,” she enthuses. “Being able to walk to school every day—stopping on the London Bridge, the London Eye is there, Westminster is there, my school is just on the other side—it is just so cool.”

Apart from her friends and family back home, she’s embraced her newfound independence and self-reliance that has fast-tracked her entry into adult life.

“Having to figure things out for myself—how to set up a bank account, how to register for a doctor, how to cook for myself (LSE doesn’t have dining halls), how to create my own support network—it’s been really empowering to do all of that on my own at eighteen. It’s tough, but in the end, I would always choose it. The life skills it has given me are incredible and I’ve made the most amazing friends and connections along the way.”