An American NYU student studying a semester in Italy has sparked controversy after describing how she hated every aspect of her time abroad.
Among those commenting on Stacia Datskovska’s essay, published by Insider on March 9, was notorious exchange student Amanda Knox, who joked, “Girl what are you talking about? Studying abroad is great!’
Knox, 35, made international headlines after she was accused of killing her roommate, an exchange student, while she was studying in Italy.
She spent four years in an Italian prison before finally being acquitted.
Datskovska wrote that while she had high hopes for her semester in Florence, she hated her seven roommates, “hostile” locals, and her online internship.
She said she “loathed the sights, hated the people and can’t wait to get back home to my New York campus.”
Stacia Datskovska, a journalism and international relations student, described how her study abroad experience in Florence had a terrible time in an essay published by Insider
Amanda Knox, who also had a bad study abroad, commented on Datskovska’s essay
Knox suggested in a tweet Tuesday night that “studying abroad is awesome.”
Datskovska’s essay prompted a range of reactions – some people seemed to sympathize with her struggles, while others accused her of being entitled to not have the luxury of studying abroad.
One person tweeted their story with the caption “no confidence,” while another said, “when your study abroad experience isn’t exactly like the tiktok that shaped your perception of reality.”
Datskovska, a journalism and international relations student, described how she had high hopes before starting her trip and was looking forward to living just minutes from the famous Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral.
“But as my semester in Florence drew to a close, I began to despise the sights, hate the people, and couldn’t wait to return home to my campus in New York,” she wrote.
Not only couldn’t she enjoy the city because she was working to maintain her grade point average, Datskovska was also enrolled in an online internship that she says took up most of her free time.
To make matters worse for the student, her fellow students were constantly visiting places like Amsterdam and Ibiza on the weekends, which she described as “a vain form of escapism”.
Instead, she wanted to plan her life after graduation and embark on more thoughtful journeys. That’s why she traveled alone to Nice, Switzerland, London, Malta and Dubai.
One person tweeted their story with the caption “no confidence,” while another said, “when your study abroad experience isn’t exactly like the tiktok that shaped your perception of reality.”
During her stay in Florence, Datskovska was only a few minutes away from the famous Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (pictured)
In particular, Datskovska disliked the way she was treated by locals, who she said would “roll their eyes” at walking past them
One element of the semester abroad that particularly scared her was the way she was received by the people of Florence.
“I could provide concrete examples of them being hostile, reckless and absurd,” she wrote.
“One time two women were talking about me on the bus, looking me up and down and scoffing,” she added. “The Italians rolled their eyes when I met them on the street.”
Datskovska also felt that her time on board was not satisfactorily advancing her career. She was dismayed to find her colleagues in New York making the most of their opportunities while she wasted time in Florence.
“I was continually frustrated that my life in New York wasn’t put on hold. Fellow NYU students who remained in New York actively undertook personal internships, networked with zeal, and took steps to advance their futures,” she wrote.
Knox also had a terrible time studying abroad at the age of just 20. She was charged with the 2007 murder of her roommate, Meredith Kercher, but was later acquitted due to lack of evidence.
21-year-old Leeds University student Kercher was found stabbed to death and her throat cut in her bedroom in the flat she shared with Knox in the Italian mountain town of Perugia.
Meredith Kercher was killed just three months after moving to Italy to study in Perugia in 2007
The house in Perugia, Italy where Kercher was killed and where she lived with Knox
Rudy Guede, pictured in 2007, is the only person convicted of Kercher’s murder. He was released from prison after 13 years
Knox was convicted of killing Kercher with her then-lover, Raffaele Sollecito. They are seen reuniting 15 years after their arrest in Italy
Knox, then 20, and her then 23-year-old Italian boyfriend Sollecito were arrested four days later as prosecutors claimed the murder was part of a sex game gone wrong.
They were convicted in an Italian court of twice raping and murdering Kercher. The couple spent almost four years in prison before their conviction was overturned due to a lack of evidence linking them to the crime.
A court ruling ordered the Italian state to pay Knox $21,000 in damages.
Rudy Guede, 34, was instead found guilty after his DNA was discovered on Kercher’s body, although he claimed he was in the bathroom listening to music when she was killed.
He was released from prison after serving 13 years of a 30-year sentence.