I will never forget my first day at Georgetown University. As a junior at Sydney University, I came to Georgetown in Fall 2025 as an exchange student. It was move-in day, and I was chatting with a Georgetown mum in the queue at the Leavey Center bookstore. I mentioned I had just moved in by myself and that I was a study abroad student from Australia. She insisted I join their family trip to the Arlington, Va., Target to get everything I need to move into my new home, and I very gratefully accepted. 

We went around Target with a shopping trolley, and she helped me find everything I needed for my apartment. I felt like I was in a Hollywood movie –– this would never happen in Sydney. I can’t even remember the last time a stranger was this kind to me.

I don’t know if that family even remembers this, but I will never forget their generosity. The whole of my first day was transformative because from then on, I viewed people at Georgetown as such kind and welcoming people. It gave me confidence I would have an awesome time here. 

I want you to know how much your kindness and inclusion means to an exchange student. Invite that stranger to your party even if you don’t really know them. Introduce them to your circle of friends. It is zero effort for you, but it could mean the world to them. And we are more grateful than you know.

Studying abroad means leaving your family, your friends and your familiar daily life behind for a few months. It requires significant financial and emotional investment, and for many students the experience can be more isolating than transformative. Many of us apply to our host universities based on their reputation, student life and location, without ever having visited the place we are signing up to live in. I originally applied to study at Georgetown because of its renowned international reputation and its location as the heart of the American government. I was also keen to experience the American “college experience”: the frat parties, the football games, college sports and exploring Washington, D.C., with my new friends. 

But what makes or breaks a study abroad experience is neither the prestige nor the location of the host university. Rather, it is the willingness of the community to actively include those who arrive without social ties. Georgetown as an institution was highly impressive, absolutely. Yet what I value the most about my experience here is my new friends and the memories I made with them.

 After my first day at Georgetown, my fears disappeared. I knew I picked a great place to study abroad thanks to the kindness I experienced. In the late summer evening, I was enjoying the view on the balcony of my Village A apartment and spotted another student doing the same thing, on the balcony across from me. We met up, and I discovered he grew up in Sydney too, showing what a global community Georgetown had. I loved how open everyone was to making a new friend. 

The next night, my neighbour who I had known for all of two minutes invited me to a party she was heading to. My life felt like a Hollywood movie in my first month at Georgetown. It was unreal. I made friends in class, in the Yates gym (and sauna), in rugby and running club, at parties. I hope you Hoyas know how special that is ––- Sydney isn’t like that. I wish our community at Sydney University was half as open and friendly as yours.

It feels inadequate to not include all of the amazing memories I made at Georgetown, but I am so happy to be able to leave a message here.

I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to study on the Hilltop and I hope you Hoyas realize how lucky you are. Above all, I hope you cherish the wonderful community you are a part of, and continue to build it up. It truly is special. 

If you can study abroad in a foreign country, sign up without hesitation. When you arrive, go all-in on your new life. Thanks to the Georgetown community, I don’t regret it for one second.

Jack Lockhart is a junior at Sydney University in Australia. He studied abroad at Georgetown during Fall 2025.