From London to the Estonian Defence Forces and Aviation Academy
Matias Rasevicius, who has studied at the Üleilmakool (Global School) for years, writes about how he studied the Estonian language and his future in Estonia.
My name is Matias. I am turning 18 soon. I was born and raised in London, England. It seems incredible but in only three months I will begin my service in the Estonian Defence Forces and after that I hope to start studying at the Estonian Aviation Academy. Ever since I was a child, I have wanted to study at an Estonian university and after I narrowly missed a chance to study at the University of Cambridge, I knew my future was definitely in Estonia.
My mother is Estonian and she has always wanted me to speak Estonian. When I was younger, I studied at the Estonian School in London and after that, the Keelekindlus Language Club aimed at teenagers, learning Estonian, preparing Estonian dishes and meeting interesting Estonians.
Studying Estonian and mathematics in Estonian at the Üleilmakool was also very useful and I have been doing it for years. I studied maths so that I could understand the vocabulary when I study engineering in Estonia. I have always liked the online classes of Üleilmakool, especially the fact that in addition to studying, you can talk to your teachers about the school, the weather, politics etc.
Last February, I went to the open door days of Estonian universities. It was fascinating to see the various universities and everything became a lot clearer for me. I found out that I needed to take the B2 level Estonian language exam to apply to universities, and I started studying for it. The Estonian language teachers of Üleilmakool helped me prepare. In November, I went to Estonia, took the exam and got a really good result. The hardest part of the B2 exam was writing an essay and a letter because in my English school, I have been studying only four science subjects in the past two years. The British school system is very different from the one in Estonia.
Next I began to prepare for the national mathematics exam with the math teacher of Üleilmakool in order to apply to the Estonian Aviation Academy. I was sad to find out I would not be taking the exam because my school in England scheduled one of my exams for the same day as the national exam in Estonia and I would not be able to go to Estonia to take the exam. Thankfully, the Aviation Academy changed its rules in the meantime and now they also accept the final grades of international schools in the application process. I hope to apply for a place this year. Before my studies, I have to complete my national service and I am very excited about it.
In any case, my future is in Estonia, full of exciting challenges and interesting opportunities.
Matias Rasevicius
