Where Finance And Ski Meet
It’s Sunday evening and he sits at the table in front of his laptop. He goes to the heater and picks the hot charcoals and puts them in the metal heat management of the hookah. After he carefully carries the large hookah to the small table in front of the couch, he sits, takes a deep breath and blows a big cloud of smoke.
Julian-Kris Popov is a 21-year-old senior at the American University in Bulgaria (AUBG) majoring in Informational Systems and Business Administration with a concentration in Finance.
He is from Sofia, Bulgaria and he is glad that he chose AUBG.
“In my last high-school year I had to decide whether to study abroad or in Bulgaria. I was thinking about studying in the Netherlands with one of my best friends but in the end I decided to go to AUBG. My friend stayed in the Netherlands for one year but didn’t like it and then he went to England to study there. I am happy that I chose AUBG and didn’t go through something similar,” Julian-Kris said.
He enjoys his three and a half years in AUBG, but he also considers them beneficial.
“I really like the university. I love the atmosphere, I learned a lot of things and I had a great time. For my three years in AUBG, I became more organized, I learned how to be more productive and effective. I did an internship in Delloite in the summer and some of the skills that I learned in AUBG helped me a lot to adapt there,” Julian-Kris says while inhaling from the hookah
Even though he took full advantage of the perks that AUBG is offering, Julian-Kris still believes that there are things he could have done better.
“One of the things that I regret in AUBG is never really considering going on an exchange program or Erasmus. It was an interesting opportunity, but I never found the time to use it. I never researched the different university options, how to get approved or whether this is for me. Time passed by very quickly and at some point, I was senior and couldn’t go anymore,” he says and passes the hookah hose.
In the winter, whenever Julian-Kris has the opportunity he likes to go on an adventure in the mountains.
“My main hobby is skiing. I practice it mainly in the winter for obvious reasons. I like to ski outside the slopes which can be really dangerous if done incorrectly. I think it is more interesting, but it requires more skills and knowledge. Being in the mountain calms me and helps me to forget about my problems,” he says.
Julian-Kris at some point even considered working in the mountain but was discouraged by the low wages in the sector.
“If all jobs were paid the same, I would work in the mountain rescue team. I would like to be all day in nature and help people.
For me, the most beautiful thing in the world is nature. I think all mountains, rivers, and waterfalls are beautiful,” he says.
His other hobbies include hookahs and cars.
“What I like about hookah is that you cannot smoke it alone, or if you do you won’t enjoy it that much. It is a social activity that is usually combined with a pleasant conversation with friends,” Julian-Kris says.
Julian-Kris was described by Seta Sarafyan, one of his close friends in AUBG, as a calm and positive person who is ready to help anyone.
“I don’t remember how exactly we became friends, but I remember that after my second year at the university, he helped me to get to Nantucket Island in Massachusetts during my work and travel program,” Seta says.
Julian-Kris has ambitious goals for the future and is carefully planning how to achieve them.
“In five years I would like to run my own business, but I know that in order to do it I need to have some experience, that’s why I am planning to work in a big international company in Bulgaria, probably of the big four accounting firms, for a few years and then start my own company,” Julian-Kris says.
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Kostadin Davidov is a senior in AUBG studying Bussines Administration. He was surprised by how many things in common he has with Julian-Kris the person he interviewed for his JMC course.
