UWC for me was more than just an amazing and unique social experience, it was also a way for me to escape the standardized and religious based education in my home country, Israel. I finally found an institution which gives respect to the humanities, to discussions and pluralism. UWC for me was a way to enjoy going to school and to not feel brainwashed by the ideals the government demands.
UWC also allowed me to meet people who have had similar lives to mine, except from the other side of the never-ending Middle Eastern conflict. I finally understood how our experiences may have been so similar and different, how in the end the people on the other side may have been my best friends in a different life. My experience in UWC helped me discover a broader view on my life and my region, which I could not have gotten anywhere else at this age.
After UWC, I went back to Israel to enroll in mandatory military service in the Israeli Defense Forces for nearly three years. As I was nearing the end of my service, I had to decide whether to attend university in Israel or travel to the USA for an education. When I discovered Lewis and Clark, my choice became easy. I craved the small, discussion-based classes and how the development of my thought is no less important than the grade I receive. I wanted to be in an environment which promotes global thinking and where diversity is celebrated. In Lewis and Clark, I would want to major in Economics, as the field has always interested me, and will perhaps help me to enter the field of startup which my city is famous for.
Serving in the military, I don’t have much time for hobbies, but some I still manage to do quite regularly is volunteering as a medic in the ambulance system, off-roading and hiking in the Israeli desert where I grew up, and discovering new places in the city of Tel Aviv where I live. While going to the beach with friends does not quite qualify as a hobby, it’s the most natural pastime in Tel Aviv, and something I will hopefully never stop doing.
In my life, I have managed to travel quite a lot, yet mostly in Europe as it is quite close. I do not really believe Europe was meant for me, and so I hope to travel more in my own continent in the future. In the USA I plan to travel a lot by car as that is something I was barely able to do due closed borders.
In Lewis and Clark, I want to open up to new interests and hobbies, perhaps challenge my ideas and discover new ones.