Student Spotlights

Each week, the International Student e-Newsletter highlights an international student with an interview. Below are past featured students.

Image	International student alumna Winnie Bush, originally from Nigeria, loved the many different opportunities she had at Kent State. A graduate of the Higher Education Administration and Student Affairs master’s program, Winnie was able to work on campus as a graduate assistant, take part in internships, and get involved in student organizations. Read the full profile here.
Image	Natalia Bojnanska is a self-motivated freshman passionate about education and studying integrated language arts. Born and raised in Slovakia, she moved to the United States three years ago and is now the recipient of the #YouAreWelcomeHere Scholarship at Kent State. Bojnanska acknowledges teachers are trying to make a difference in the world, and that is exactly what she plans to do one day. “Teaching is not just about the subject area, it’s about nurturing the human beings,” she says. Read the full profile here.
Image	Born and raised in England, Daniel Isaac is an ambitious mechanical engineering student with an interest in sustainability. Famous for the Big Ben clock tower and London Eye, London, England, is the place Isaac calls home. Read the full profile here.
Image	Blaire Thompson is an ambitious graduate student from The Bahamas committed to furthering her education. She is currently enrolled in the Higher Education Administration Master's program at Kent State, and has a certification in International Higher Education. Read the full profile here.
Image	Reika Nakano is a Japanese exchange student studying Business Management. Although She's originally from the small town of Hokkaido, Japan, Reika's education has been an international affair; before coming to Kent State, Reika attended schools in New Zealand, Canada, and Tokyo. This is her first semester studying in the United States, but she's excited to experience everything that Kent State has to offer. Read the full profile here.
Image	A driven international student focused on staying involved and achieving high academic ideals, Marius Karl is a junior business management major from Vienna, Austria. Karl brings a unique perspective to the College of Business after completing his mandatory military service in Vienna and coming to Kent State in 2017. Read the full profile here.
Image	Anna Richard is a Kent State University alumnus who graduated in 2017 with a BFA in Visual Communication Design. She participated in a two-week study-abroad program in spring 2017, during which time she went to Dublin, Glasgow, London and Paris. Anna wanted to study abroad in order to broaden her perspective on design and experience Europe in an authentic setting, but she didn’t expect it to be such a profoundly meaningful experience. “It was probably the best thing I did during my college career,” she says. “Truly, it changed my life.” Read the full profile here.
Image	Xuezhu Wang is a sophomore international student from Shenyang, China. Xuezhu decided to major in nursing with a minor in psychology in order to fulfill her passion for doing good in the world. She says, “I really like to take care of other people. You can do that as a doctor, but then you miss out on the human interaction that makes [healthcare] so special.” After graduation, Xuezhu wants to get hands on experience working as a nurse before going back to grad school to become a nurse practitioner. Read the full profile here.
Image	Jaroslav Skuta is an international graduate student studying music performance with a concentration in clarinet. He’s come to Kent State University from his home in the Czech Republic in order to pursue his lifelong passion for music. Jaroslav played clarinet in an ensemble when he was in high school and studied performance at a Czech music conservatory, and these experiences helped him understand how special music truly is. He says, “I’ve always loved music, and I really wanted to find a career that made it a part of my life.” His dream is to become a professional musician or college professor so that he can help shape the next generation of clarinet performers. Read the full profile here.
Image	Amrth Ashok Shenava is a Sophomore international student studying computer science with a minor in entrepreneurship. Although his family comes from India, Amrth was born and raised in Dubai, the ultramodern capital city of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and he considers the city to be his home. After graduation, he wants to stay in the United States to immerse himself in the vibrant tech world of Silicon Valley. His dream is to become the next Elon Musk. Read the full profile here.
Image	Nitya Mittal is a sophomore international from Mumbai, India pursuing a degree in Biotechnology with a minor in Management. Nitya wants a career in the research field—but not as a researcher herself. Instead, she hopes to leverage her business minor and experience in leadership into a management position that allows her to work more in the business perspective of research science. Read the full profile here.
Image	Nadya Putri is a senior international student studying Business Management. Originally from Indonesia’s capital city, Jakarta, Nadya has been studying in the United States for four years. As a high school student, she spent two years taking college courses in Seattle, Washington; after she graduated high school, she came to Kent State to study with her sister, Tasya. Read the full profile here.
Image	Two international students from Kent State share their volunteering experiences and stories through Community Engaged Learning(CEL), a Kent State Organization educating volunteers of the social justice issues within the university and surrounding communities.Even though Hassan Afzal and Ahood Al Mamaari are from two different corners of the world, they share a similar passion and drive when it comes to bettering the communities they are a part of. Read the full profile here.
Image	Reika Nakano is a Japanese exchange student studying Business Management. Although She's originally from the small town of Hokkaido, Japan, Reika's education has been an international affair; before coming to Kent State, Reika attended schools in New Zealand, Canada, and Tokyo. This is her first semester studying in the United States, but she's excited to experience everything that Kent State has to offer. Read the full profile here.
Image	Najat is an international student from Oman in the Higher Education Master's program and Kent State University. She has been studying in America for the past 7 years and this spotlight explains how much she's grown since then. Najat's favorite part of Kent is its inclusivity, and she says that here, "People want to get to know you." Read the full profile here.