Hello! My name is Suhail Akram and I was born and raised in the mesmerizing valley of Kashmir. Kashmir has been filled with uncertainties for many decades, every month we experience several shutdowns where schools, businesses, transportation and any other sign of life are put to rest. Nobody knows if one is going to return home safely because in Kashmir every road is appointed with multiple Indian soldiers carrying AK-47 rifles.
Primarily, I applied to the United World Colleges because I was very impressed by the type of education they offered and at the same time I also wanted to have some sort of stability and structure in my life.
My two years at Robert Bosch College have indeed been full of transformation. Academics at times were stressful but the community was built as such that instead of making it more pressing, they helped me go through it smoothly. I am in love with the four project weeks I had, I can say that they have been some of the most beautiful experiences of my life. I went on a hiking trip to Villach in Austria, I explored the post war life of Mostar in Bosnia Herzegovina, I went for a photography project in Paris, and I also led a photography project in Colmar towards the northeast of France. These project weeks were not just about the project that we were working on but in fact these weeks gave us a taste of reality. We had to arrange everything from transportation to accommodation, these weeks gave us an opportunity of taking real responsibility, because each choice we made had a very direct impact on us. We were able to utilize this experience, establish unbreakable bonds, make beautiful memories and finish our projects!
Lewis and Clark college has a beautiful campus, and pictures of the campus remind me of the gardens back home. The academic program matches my interests, apart from that it also has a small community which allows for a closely-knit community which is all I want from my college and thus it makes a very good fit for me. I want to study psychology because after finishing my studies I want to return back to Kashmir and help the people overcome the trauma that we have suffered over so many years because of India’s illegal occupation. I also identify as a Kashmiri with no association to India. I am always up for conversations and clarifications about this issue.
Outside the classroom I really like photography, during my time at RBC I have led photography session for three terms for whoever was interested. I love taking pictures of nature and experimenting with new techniques. I also like to hike and camp. I recently discovered my passion for table football and ping pong. In class I like biology and economics because no matter how different they are to some extent they help me understand life.