Meet Elisa Martini

Learn more about Elisa Martini, Alumni (Class of 2020)

Where are you living now and what are you doing?

I’m currently living in London, studying Engineering and Architectural Design at UCL.

Do you feel that ISL adequately prepared you for this next step in your life?

Yes, I can definitely say I feel prepared. It’s no secret that the IB is hard, but it’s set me up to know what to expect from university and deal with the workload. As well, working in groups on projects is a very frequent occurrence, so the school’s focus on soft skills has been beneficial. Apart from that, all of my high school experiences with friends and family are what made the transition from high school to university easy.

What has been the most challenging thing to overcome since leaving ISL, and transitioning to your new environment during a global pandemic?

That’s probably having to accept the fact that I probably won’t have any in person classes this year and knowing about the course trips we’re missing out on because the spaces are closed. Everything is online, and while it’s been a small struggle for students and professors alike to get used to teaching on Zoom, it has its perks. You have to push yourself a little more to stay motivated during lectures, especially the afternoon ones. That being said, I don’t think I’d be getting this much sleep if I also had to get up every morning to go to campus.

Do you have any interesting anecdotes to share about your life at University in Covid times?

I never realised how creative people can get with making food in a microwave until all of my catered dorm decided they were tired of the cafeteria food. There have been plenty of successes and failures, including a perfect pasta carbonara and burnt brownies. And some fire alarms have gone off. But only a few😊
 

What do you miss most about ISL?

I’d have to say mucking around with my friends in between classes and at lunch and then realising we were late to class. Lots of memories in the hallways.

If you could give any advice to ISL’s current Senior Class, what would it be?

Because places are closed and events aren’t happening doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. It just means that you have to find new ways to have fun, so go try some new things. As well, there have never been this many free books, events, workshops online, so take this opportunity to explore all the resources you can find on what you like doing.

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