Noel Konagai, Self-Designed Honors Major. Study Away Site: New York

NYU Shanghai student Noel Konagai recently presented at the NYU Global Engagement Symposium in New York on November 20. Noel is a self designed honors major, with a focus in Autocracy and Democracy Studies.

The global engagement symposium is a joint initiative between the offices at NYU with the aim to curate internationally focused undergraduate research projects, exchange internship experiences and encourage community engagement. Noel’s presentation was based on his summer research that was funded by DURF (Dean’s Undergraduate Research Fund) at NYU Shanghai.

Noel spent five days over the summer in Kyiv, Ukraine presenting his work: “Reports of Euromaidan: Comparative Analysis of Russia Today and Euronews.” His goal was to explore what it means for news to remain impartial through the analysis of two European television networks -- the state-funded Russia Today, and the multilingual pan-european Euronews.

Here is a quick Q&A about his current study away experience in New York:

Favorite thing about study away site?
Noel: Ranging from classes, professors, and professional opportunities that I like about New York, I would like to highlight only one, which is food. This city boasts of ethnic cuisine. Throughout my semester I had the opportunity to try cuisine ranging from Ethiopian to Malay. In addition, there is a Hungarian food truck coming every now and then to Gould Plaza (in front of Stern), which sells a typical beach food called “lángos.” It passed my quality test!

Most surprising thing?
When I came to New York, I was warned that it is hard to make friends. I experienced the contrary. It took me only a couple of small talk phrases to start meaningful conversations, such as “I liked your comment in class,” “you had an interesting internship experience,” or simply “I like your sweater.” A couple of weeks into the semester I found myself going out to have meals and coffee with students from New York. With the students from Abu Dhabi, I could explore the spots that the city had to offer. However, you really need to make an effort to meet new people: Ask for their number and/or Facebook contact after a small conversation if you want to keep in touch!