The story of one dream: how a boy from Buchi survived the occupation and started a new life – Publications

Yura’s story is complicated: during the occupation of Buchi, a 14-year-old boy at the time, lost his father. The boy himself then miraculously survived, although he was shot several times by a Russian soldier.

After the injury, Yura’s psychological state was difficult – constant worries and fears accompanied him. In this condition, the boy was sent to an educational and rehabilitation camp at the base of the NGO Gen.Ukrainian, where psychologists of the organization helped him live through the negative experience and find a way to healing.

So Yura was able to start a new life. Today he is already 16 years old, he has a mother and two brothers who support each other.

Six months ago, thanks to the public organization Gen.Ukrainian and with the help of the educational company STUDY.UA, Yura fulfilled his dream — he entered the American school South Kent School. The school agreed to provide a grant for studies, but with one condition – Yura had to improve his English level by two levels during the summer.

The boy himself has already adapted to studying at a US school. We talked with Yura: we found out what difficulties arose during the preparation for admission, how studying at school is going, and we also asked about plans for the future.

Tell me where you live and study

I have been studying since October at the boarding school South Kent School, which is located in the city of South Kent, Connecticut. This is an international school, because children from 20 different countries of the world study here.

I live in a school dormitory. I really like it here: it’s a quiet peaceful place, and around the mountain. Also a big plus is that my school is about an hour away from New York. Therefore, I already managed to go twice: the first time to see Times Square, and the second time just to walk around the city. By the way, the New York subway is actually a separate underground city.

Tell us about the preparation for admission. How did you improve your English to the appropriate level, how long did it take?

However, the STUDY Academy English Language Academy team helped me a lot. I practiced with the teacher all summer, almost every day. We combined the program for B1 and B2. In addition to the speaking part, I studied academic English to understand future teachers, write research papers, essays, etc. As a result, everything worked out – and the school confirmed my enrollment.

How is your training going? Was it difficult to start mastering the curriculum of an American school after the Ukrainian education system?

I don’t know how it is in other schools, but studying at South Kent School is quite easy for me. If we compare it with the Ukrainian school, then the emphasis here is probably not on learning itself, but more on lessons for life. That is, what you will definitely need. You choose for yourself those subjects in which you will be comfortable studying, and you will be able to apply the acquired knowledge and skills in the future.

Therefore, I chose three subjects for myself. The first subject is the English language: English as a second language (ESL). This course is important to me because it is designed for those students for whom English is a second language. In the classes, we learn to write, read and speak English, which helps me in learning other subjects.

The second subject is the Open Robotics Lab, where we study robotics. I have already made a lego model of an elephant and now I need to write the code to make this elephant perform certain actions. That is, IT together with engineering.

The third subject is STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics). We learn to collect data, measure, analyze, use special scientific instruments. In simple words, it is a mix of chemistry and physics.

For example, recently we had a laboratory work. It was a little unusual for me, because the laboratory work in the American school is very different from the ones we conducted in Ukraine. Everything is real here: in class we roasted marshmallows, dog food and popcorn. Then they wrote down these data, calculated, wrote a laboratory report, filled in the tables and handed in their work – I really liked it.

Tell us about the preparations for departure. Was it difficult to get a student visa, how was the interview?

Yes, I was worried. Obtaining a US visa is already a difficult process, but it was further complicated by the fact that school had already started and I needed to get a visa urgently.

However, everything worked out, I was very lucky with the people around me. The STUDY.UA team undertook the entire process of document preparation: from filling out the questionnaire to interview recommendations.

The registration process lasted approximately three weeks. I went to apply for a visa to Poland, lived there for a while before the interview. On the day of application, I first had my documents checked, and then I waited in front of the window to be called for an interview.

At the interview itself, there was a choice: to communicate in Polish or English, I chose English. At first, they asked banal questions, for example, “How are you?” or something from the forms: “What is the purpose of the trip to the USA?”. Then they asked about the school.

Everything went easily and calmly, although I faced many rejections. As a result, I was able to get a visa. I think this is due to the fact that STUDY UA helped me prepare all the documents correctly and thoroughly prepare for the interview. I am grateful for the help of STUDY.UA and I am sincerely glad that large and small companies of Ukraine join volunteer initiatives and continue to bring victory closer.

What are your plans for the future?

I want to help people who suffered from the war, but I don’t know yet where it will be. I have not yet decided whether I will stay in the US after my studies or return home. Now it is difficult to plan something for the future, so I just live.

What advice would you give to other teenagers planning to study abroad?

Go to your goal, try, don’t be afraid that something won’t work out there. After all, the main thing is to have a desire and believe in one’s abilities. I used to think that going to school abroad was something unreal. But in fact, there are many opportunities, different scholarships, so you will definitely find the perfect place for you. There are also many good people who can help and support you. Just be open to new things and everything will work out. And, of course, learn English, because you will need it.

Despite the difficult times, our youth demonstrate extraordinary resilience and inner strength. An example of such an ambitious personality is Yura, who turned his dream into reality with the support of Gen.Ukrainian and STUDY.UA

Today, the war has touched every child: they lose their loved ones, their native homes, their usual life and, as a result, their opportunities. That is why it is very important to create social elevators for them and provide comprehensive support to ensure a happy and bright future for them.