Changing Lives, Opening Minds
It is Friday afternoon and even though the America for Bulgaria Student Centre is rather empty at that time, there is an office on the second floor at the heart of the Student Services hub that still has a steady flow of visitors with documents or laptops in their hands. It is the Erasmus and Exchange Programs office, and its visitors are mainly students going on an Erasmus exchange in the spring, passing by to finalize their documents or just ask a question, or ask for advice.
The Erasmus+ and Exchange Programs Office is attended by two ladies — Mariya Handzhiyska, study abroad coordinator; and Evelina Lacheva, administrative assistant for Erasmus and exchange programs. Handzhiyska has been working at the office since 2007, and Lacheva — since 2017. “We take care of incoming and outgoing students who go on an exchange, and provide information on all the study abroad programs,” Lacheva says.
Indeed, according to the AUBG website, there are numerous study abroad opportunities for AUBG students. One option is of course the Erasmus Plus exchange, through which one can study for a semester in a university in Europe. There are more than 50 partner universities all across Europe, in countries such as France, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom, Norway, Hungary etc. Another option is to go to USA for a semester or a whole academic year in one of the partner universities there, such as the University of Maine or the State University of New York. A third possibility would be going on an ISEP exchange all across the world, to countries on the other side of the globe, such as Hong Kong or Australia. “There are different ISEP partners for different majors, one should just pass by and ask us, and we will guide them,” Lacheva explains.
Not only students have the opportunity to go on an exchange program. Such programs are available for faculty and staff as well: professors can travel abroad and teach or attend trainings or vice versa — AUBG can welcome foreign professors for a semester or a year; and administrative staff can attend the so-called staff weeks or job scheduling trainings. “Speaking from personal experience, I went on a one-week staff exchange in Rotterdam. It was immensely instructive and enriching for me,” Lacheva says.
The slogan of the Erasmus Plus program is “Changing lives and opening minds”, according to its official website; and Evelina Lacheva thinks it fits perfectly to its mission. “There is nothing more rewarding than happy incoming or outgoing students. When they come to us in the office to thank us, or to share some of the amazing experiences they’ve had, that’s when we feel the most content; and we know we have done our job right,” Lacheva says.
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Rumyana Penzova is a sophomore studying Journalism and Mass Communication at AUBG. She is going on an Erasmus exchange soon.
