Panther Trails – Carolina Zeitune

ISB Class: 2017

College: New York University

What career path are you pursuing?

I’m majoring in Dramatic Writing and double minoring in Psychology and Producing.  I’m pursuing a career path in the entertainment business, where I hope to eventually write and produce my own plays/television series/films.

How would you describe the transition from ISB to your new college?

It was a relatively smooth transition, although of course it was tough at times.  Personally, the toughest aspect of the transition was the lost sense of community.  At ISB, I feel it’s very easy to create a sense of community, as it’s not a large school and you know everyone’s name, face, etc.  At NYU at least, the environment doesn’t necessarily incentivize community building. I don’t know if it’s because I’m at an arts school, or if it’s NYU in general, or if it’s every college, but there is definitely a stronger sense of independence, where the environment encourages everyone to be on their own and compete against each other.  I will say, however, that that’s one of my favorite aspects about college so far. When you’re forced to be on your own and help yourself, you learn a lot about who you are, who you need to be, what you can do, what you can’t do, and what you want to do- when you rely on too many people those things start to get a little blurry.

Do you feel ISB prepared you well for your college experience (both academically and socially)?

Socially-wise, I feel ISB didn’t quite prepare me for college.  At ISB I was so used to liberal-minded, international students, that it was a bit of a transition when I started at NYU.  Even though NYU is a very international and liberal college, the culture is different, the people are different, and the beliefs of the country it’s in are different.  I was so used to a certain demographic at ISB that it took adjusting when I began college. Academically-wise, however, I feel ISB prepared me well. Because I’m a Dramatic Writing major, my workload requires me to read over 5 books and write over 50 pages a week.  This hasn’t been an issue for me thus far, and I credit that to the arduous IB program, that taught me to not necessarily work for longer (because you won’t have time for that), but to work more productively.

What advice would you give to this year’s Seniors as they follow in your footsteps next year?

It sounds cheesy, but I have found it to be true in my own life: do what you love, and do it a lot.  Passion will help you overcome any type of adversity, so find what your passion is and use it to drive you.  High-School is almost over and you’re going to be thrown into a world where you need something that you can always hold on to, regardless of time, distance, and money.

Any other thoughts to share?

Best of luck!