Sofia Gonzalez
Sofia Rodriguez was assigned by an international placement agent in Mexico to attend the American Language Institute at San Diego State University. As it turned out, it was a wise choice.
“I’m glad I was able to go to school there,” said Sofia, a former student in the Intensive English for Communication (IEC) and International Business English (IBE) programs who has moved back to Mexico City.
Sofia came to the ALI hoping to improve her English speaking skills and expand her vocabulary. She said both were accomplished because of the outstanding faculty at the ALI.
“I learned a lot with them,” Sofia said. “They were really interested in teaching us the best possible way. Also, they were very accessible to answer our questions.”
While at the ALI, Sofia said she made many new friends that she still keeps in touch with.
“I use the skills I learned at ALI when I talk with my new friends,” she said. “And, I can watch movies and listen to music in English and understand more than before.”
Sofia grew up in Mexico City with a variety of interests. As a child, her favorite activities included soccer, dancing, and reading.
She was able to continue with each of these interests while at SDSU. The university has an outstanding intramural program where she played soccer, the ALI offers a dance class each Friday, and there were many reading activities available through the ALI. She also enjoyed going to such events as a football game between SDSU and the University of Idaho that featured a spectacular fireworks show afterwards.
“I liked a lot of things about San Diego State,” Sofia said. “But I think the best thing about it were all of the activities available on campus.”
In addition, Sofia found the San Diego community to her liking.
“San Diego is an awesome place,” she said. “Everything is nice … the weather, the people, the beaches. You can hang out with your family or friends. There are many interesting places to visit where you will have fun.”
Certainly, Sofia could not have made a better choice than the ALI and SDSU.
