Hi! My name is Dimitar, and if you’d asked me a year ago what my life would look like now, I would’ve never guessed. I am currently writing from Phuket, Thailand – one of the most beautiful places on Earth. This is where I am studying, currently in my third year of high school, 8000 kilometers from home.

How it started

Two years ago, my mom told me about an opportunity to study abroad. Being a bit stubborn and comfortable with life as it was, I dismissed her suggestions every time. After a whole month of me not even looking into it, the application deadline passed.

A year later, my mom mentioned the same opportunity again. Out of habit, I dismissed all of her attempts at making me consider it. The original deadline passed without me doing anything. However, it was extended until next Sunday, and my mom mentioned it to me again. Once more, I dismissed the idea immediately.

It was now the Thursday before the new deadline. I had just returned from school. I was finishing  some homework when I received a text from my friend saying he couldn’t make it to the gym with me that day. Feeling a bit lazy myself, I decided to stay home. Very bored, I turned on my computer, looking for something entertaining to do. That’s when I remembered that the deadline had been extended. I opened the application and kept overthinking if I should start filling it in.

An hour later I went and told my parents that I had decided to apply.

What is it?

What I had just decided to apply to is UWC (United World Colleges). A franchise of 18 schools in different corners of the world with students from all places. They are globally prominent boarding high schools that follow the IB (International baccalaureate) program. Their mission is to make education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future. Their student bodies are diverse in every aspect, having students from completely different backgrounds, meaning that the schools offer need-based scholarships. Students, studying in their 2^nd or 3^rd year of high school from every country in the world, are selected by the UWC national committee for their country and are given the opportunity to finish their last two years of high school in one of the 18 UWC schools. For Macedonia, the selection process was carried out by the Macedonian national committee (UWC Macedonia).

The journey/selection process

Going back to that Thursday before the deadline:, I was sitting in front of an extensive application that I needed to fill out. That became my focus for the following few days. After a lot of effort, I finished the application on the day of the deadline. But that was just the first round. Three weeks later, I received an email invitation for the second round of the selection process which consisted of a two day selection camp in early January. In the meantime, my desire for studying at UWC kept growing stronger. The second round was very interesting. I was together with all of the remaining applicants, which passed through the first round, in Etno Selo near Kumanovo. We had two in-person interviews and four group activities through which we were assessed by the national committee. The results from the second round came in early February. I got woken up from a nap by the email I received – I was invited to the third and final round of the selection process which consisted of one final online interview. UWC was closer to becoming a reality than ever. In early March, I received an email from the committee – I was nominated to continue my education at UWC. The school I was nominated to was UWC Thailand. I had never considered the possibility of getting nominated to a school so far away from home, but it suddenly became my reality.

How is it now?

After a couple of months of administrative preparation, the day finally came. In the middle of August this year, I departed for Thailand. My life has changed a lot since. I am living in Phuket which is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. I am in a school with people from more than 90 countries and I have friends from places I didn’t know existed. I have taken part in activities that I could have never guessed I would – weekly beach cleanups on the island, debates modeled by the United Nations, working in an elephant sanctuary, kayaking, volleyball etc. I take subjects like Global Politics that I would have never gotten the chance to study back home. I immerse myself into a culture totally different from ours. Of course, from time to time I miss my family, my friends and parts of my life in Macedonia. But this is a story about trying new things and growing by stepping out of your comfort zone.

Final words

I feel that my story is a prime example of why we should never pass on opportunities that come up in our lives. If it weren’t for my friend canceling our gym session on that random Thursday last year, none of this would have been real. Yet so much has come from it. That’s why I encourage everyone reading this to say “yes” to whatever opportunity is lurking in their life. What may come from it may be exactly what you need.

Dimitar Fidanovski