Hey guys! My name is Felix Tegnér and I am a freshman economics major coming all the way from Stockholm, Sweden. I chose Temple because of the broad and solid intellectual foundation a U.S. education provides and the incredible opportunities it, and the city of Philadelphia, offers to students.
Going into this semester, I was undeniably quite anxious about the journey I was embarking on. Moving across the world at a young age, away from all your family and friends, is no small or easy task. The questions were countless:
- Would I be able to make friends and forge new, perhaps lifelong relationships?
- Would I be able to fit in and make the necessary cultural adjustments?
- Would I succeed in pursuing an education in a language so different from my native one?
I am happy to report that everything has gone incredibly well, I have met tons of really cool people, done very well in all my classes, and felt more welcomed than I could have ever imagined. The vast majority of people I have met are super friendly, and once they know where I am from, they become super interested in learning more about my culture and background. For anyone facing similar concerns about taking such a big leap, I can assure you that you are welcome here.
“The vast majority of people I have met are super friendly, and once they know where I am from, they become super interested in learning more about my culture and background.”
Felix Tegnér
Getting Involved
One of the best ways to get involved in the Temple community and meet new people is by joining one of the many student-run clubs or organizations here on campus. In my case, I decided to join the Temple eSports org, as it was a great way to combine one of my main hobbies with getting out there and meeting new friends. My goal was to make the varsity team for my favorite game. To do this I had to go through two sets of tryouts before our coach decided on the roster for the year, much like the process of a traditional college sports team. It was very tough with lots of extremely talented players trying out but in the end, I fortunately made the team!
Being on the team this semester has been one of my most fun experiences at Temple so far. It was undeniably a challenge at the start; almost everyone on the team was new, so we all had to work on our cohesion and communication together as we adjusted to everyone’s unique playstyles. Throughout the semester, as we got to know each other more and more, we made great progress as a team. It was really fun to see our collective improvement, and in the end, we pulled off some pretty impressive results against other major universities.
It has been super cool being able to represent Temple this semester, albeit in perhaps an unconventional and lower profile way through the eSports organization. We have received tons of support from the Temple community which was awesome to see! Some of the people on the team are now really close friends of mine. Getting involved in this way provided a great sense of comfort and belonging on this new journey of mine.
Go Owls!
Article by Felix Tegnér
Economics major from Sweden
#Why US Scholarship Winner
Photos by Justin Trillo