Name: Milla Heikkinen
Major/Minor: Global Studies with minors in Asian Studies, Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs, and Political Science
Hometown: Lincoln, NE
Year at UNL: Junior
Why Global Studies? I have always been drawn to anything and everything about global cultures, from Japanese and Korean cinema to Indian and Thai cuisine to learning many languages. At the start of my college career, I knew I wanted to choose something related to international cultures and languages, but all I found was International Business, so I chose it without finding out if there was International Studies, which is listed at Global Studies. My freshman year showed me I excelled at my world cultures courses I was taking, such as the WHT course, Anthropology 110 with Dr. Wayne Babchuk. At the time I was miserably below average in all business courses, so my only solace was my WHT courses, which proved that International Business was not for me. Through the students in my Chinese class at the time, I found out about Global Studies, and I instantly became intrigued and excited to learn more about it. By the end of my freshman year, I had changed majors to Global Studies and by the end of my sophomore year, I had found I was excelling in my new coursework and about to head for a year to study global studies in Helsinki, proving my choice to switch was the best choice possible for me.
I think all freshman should know that it is possible to find their niche during or even after their freshman year, and that it is okay to try out different classes outside of their major to see if another field fits better.
My Spring and Fall 2015 at the University of Helsinki were the most amazing experiences that I have had so far during my university experience. I got to learn about international politics, economics, and cultures, travel to Germany, Austria, Russia, Sweden, and Estonia, and make connections with students from all over the globe. The University of Helsinki has students from over 30 different countries studying there, making it an ideal location to meet and learn about people from other countries and get differing perspectives on the various topics discussed in courses.
After graduation, I plan to pursue a Master’s in Development Studies at the University of Helsinki.