Natasha Flick NAFKU USA Scholar 2011-2012

2012 MA Diplomatic Studies

Natasha Flick was the first in her family to graduate - from San Diego State University in Business Administration and Finance, Cum Laude and with Distinction. She says that the time she spent studying in the United Kingdom (2009-2010), “shaped my future more than anything else”.

Natasha Flick What are you doing at Keele?
My degree from San Diego State had a business focus but I am making a big switch for my Master’s course at Keele. It’s called Diplomatic Studies and I am drawing on International Relations modules too. I really wanted to study an international course at an international university.

How did you first hear about Keele University?
When I applied for Study Abroad from San Diego State my choices in the UK were London, Leeds and... a village called Keele. I researched Keele and it looked perfect for me. SDSU is a huge urban campus with over 80,000 students and I didn’t want to study in a city. I felt like I didn’t really belong there so I wanted to be part of something more accessible, to be part of a community. The more I read about Keele the more it sounded like the place for me.

How would you describe Keele?
It’s very welcoming and everyone is quick to help. Everything is close by and it’s so English - and yet there are people here from all over the world. Not just the students but the professors too. Even if they are English, they have all lived or worked abroad. It’s a great place to get a world view. And it’s gorgeous. Walking to class every day I see something new, something different, it’s just beautiful.

Why did you choose Keele for your postgraduate study?
I knew Keele already and I loved it here – and I didn’t want to do my Masters in the USA. The courses there have a narrower focus, very America-centric, and I wanted to see another side of the story. The course here has a real global perspective and the students on my course are so diverse too, not even half of them are English. There are people from Turkey, Afghanistan, China, lots of countries, so my viewpoint is being challenged all the time. There are genuine multicultural dynamics that I could never experience in the same way in America. You can imagine it’s always a lively debate for me as the lone American in the class!

What are your aspirations for your time at Keele?Natasha Flick
I am taking it a day at a time. The study abroad course was varied as I took courses from here and there. But now it’s focused and serious, very intense, and I like feeling embedded here in a scholarly community. There are no lectures; it’s all debate and discussion, so you can really challenge the professors and one another. That’s very different from my undergraduate experience.

‌What are your ambitions for five years from now?
I always thought I wanted to work in a multi-national business but now I am starting to think I might work in a government or political setting. I haven’t decided yet but I like looking at what makes people work together, how people and countries cooperate to make things happen. If I do work in business it will have to be in an international or multicultural setting.

Why would you recommend postgraduate study at Keele to fellow Americans or Canadians?
There is nowhere in America like Keele; well... I haven’t found anywhere quite like it. There is a feeling of a common purpose, people who really want to learn. It feels more serious than when I first came two years ago for a study abroad experience. There’s a real sense that we are all involved in something together. Keele is great. I love Keele.