Norbert Monti

"The first time I heard about NYU Abu Dhabi was during a youth exchange program in the United States."

A now NYUAD alumna mentioned the name of the university but that was it. Fast-forward two years and the name NYUAD came up again. This time, I was studying in Hong Kong at Li Po Chun United World College and was choosing where to continue my studies.

I cherish the opportunity to live and breathe in places I do not know because it is the best way to learn about it.

Now I have a much better understanding of the UAE and the Middle East, its culture, history, politics, and economics. Nowhere else would I have had the possibility to immerse myself.

I enjoy everything related to the social sciences, economics, political science, and law.

Simply learning and understanding the world better, seeing the connection between the seemingly unrelated events, and thinking about how they could be explained, their implications and consequences is intellectually stimulating for me.

I find the clean, structured thinking that comes with the methodologies used in the social sciences to be powerful, elegant, and informative in understanding the world.

Professor Rachel Brulé is my favorite professor.

Before taking her class Justice: Theory and Practice, I really wanted to take another class that would fulfill my requirements. The class was really small, there were only five people (including the professor and our teaching assistance).

The best thing about the class was her passion for the subject, the research, and care for her students. Her motivation to tie together not just teaching but service to the community, and a genuine sense of curiosity towards others made me deeply respect her professional outlook. It is her ability to bridge academics and service that makes her my favourite professor.

If I had to choose a class that was truly a watershed in my undergraduate career, it was Mathematics for Social Science II.

I was initially unsure if I wanted to major in economics as it seemed a bit daunting to double major in political science and economics.

I told myself if I can do this class, then I will finish my economics major too. While hard at times, this class made me appreciate mathematics like never before. I always thought mathematics was a subject that dealt with numbers, but once I was introduced to how mathematical concepts inform us about economic theories, I was sold.

My most memorable internship experience was at the Permanent Mission of Hungary to the United Nations.

It was truly a formative experience. I was tasked with writing political reports, speeches and organizing bilateral meetings between Hungary and various countries for the UN General Assembly's high-level week.

Sitting in and reporting on security council meetings on North Korean nuclear tensions, terrorist financing, and the situation in Syria was an eye-opening experience.

But what I loved the most was to get to know my co-workers. The mission is relatively small, and I had the chance to meet some professionally well-prepared yet fun people. Their guidance or joking around in office made the difference between a good internship and an unforgettable one.

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