Savitre Bachoo chose Delaware State University and there is more than one reason why she did. “I viewed all the other schools that were also interested in me because of soccer and basically at Delaware State the atmosphere here on campus is awesome. For me personally I don’t like a big, big campus and I mean compared to some of the other schools that I know the campus is really not that small, but at the same time it is in walking distance to everything around so that is what I like about the campus,” she says.
“Also the teachers are really great here. If you are one of those people that you really need help or something like that, there’s always ways to get help here like there is always tutoring places you can go to with no hassle or anything like that, but there is a lot of great opportunities on campus that students can really take advantage of and compared to some of the other schools that I have heard of through some of my friends going there right now, I think that right now Delaware State has a lot of focus on the students and they have my major here and the campus is great so I really didn’t mind coming here.”
Going to college and playing soccer here is important for Savitre, but she says she also is mindful of having a job once she finishes. “Well, I am originally from Toronto, Canada and the reason why I decided to the United States was because I am on a soccer scholarship right now, but my whole goal in the future is I am a Nursing major and in terms of working in Canada as oppose to the United States, nurses make a lot more here,” she says.
“So basically coming to school here is one step in the door to trying to make a living for myself here.”
While studying to receive a nursing degree, Savitre says much is expected from her being a soccer athlete on scholarship. “There is always high expectations here expected of the athletes because they don’t want to set the attitude to other people on campus that athletes get away with everything so basically athletes always have to be better than the regular student,” she says. “We have to prove ourselves academically, but physically especially with our sport and since this university is trying to strive to achieve a lot with their sports we always are training and with our training we are always studying and there is always mandatory study hall so as an athlete here I mean a lot of people assume that athletes get away with a lot but no, as for me especially I have to work twice as hard just to stay on top of my schoolwork and excel in that as well as my sport.”
Savitre is nineteen years old and in her second year at Delaware State. She says for her, studying in the United States is a great learning experience. “I think it is not so much how important, but I think it is more of how great it is as a learning experience because in the United States as well as Canada too I can see that there is a lot more opportunities around you as long as you take advantage of it here, anywhere really, but with this is for me I think that there is a lot of things going on that you can always get yourself involved,” she says.
“There is always experience all around you if you take the opportunities and with that it also helps you get into many job fields that you want. I think especially in America there are always opportunities for its citizens. It could be the littlest opportunities that you think that means nothing, but in the end it could turn into something big so that is what I really like. The fact that there is always an open door as long as you take advantage of it.”
Savitre's advice to other international students is… “By people coming to the United States from different countries people think that they won’t appreciate your culture or where you are from especially if you are different than the average person here, but really coming here is not the way sometimes people portray it,” she says.
“People are welcoming here and people appreciate the fact that you are an individual and there is a lot of opportunities here and I just think it is a great advantage from studying away usually where I’m usually from.
