Revolutionary Tales: International Student Embarks on Her Greatest Trek Yet

November 22, 2024

Authored by:

Nick Erickson, Video by Cara Taylor

With some of Earth's most majestic marvels serving as her homeland's northern border, Nepal native Shambhavi Adhikari has spent all her life surrounded by summits that humans can only reach through grit, perseverance and risk. Climbing to those peaks often marks the ultimate culmination of success for those who dare venture to them.

While Adhikari has trekked some herself, most notably on a five-day excursion to Gosainkunda Lake that sits 14,000 feet high in the Himalayas, she has also experienced plenty of success and happiness closer to sea level living in Kathmandu, Nepal's hilly capital city. She grew up the daughter of two professors and was extremely close with her family, especially when celebrating the festival Dashaintogether. She had a strong group of friends who she often walked with around the Thamel neighborhood and Durbar Square, discussing life while enjoying local cuisines such as sel roti, Thakali thali and chukauni.

Adhikari had also just graduated from Tribhuvan University with a bachelor's degree in electronics engineering, a stepping stone to a budding career in the industry that landed her an apprenticeship as an analyst and later a full-time gig as a machine learning engineer in Lalitpur, just an hour south of Kathmandu.

Yet there was another mountain Adhikari felt she had to climb to achieve her career desires. And in early August, she set out on perhaps her greatest trek yet when she landed in Washington, D.C., to begin her graduate studies at the George Washington University, an institution nearly 8,000 miles away from the only home she's ever known.

"I started my journey in Nepal by studying engineering, and while doing that, I became interested in data and wanted to explore it more deeply," Adhikari said. "Unfortunately, I felt limited by the curriculum in Nepal. I began looking for opportunities abroad, particularly in the U.S., which is known for its resources. I found GW, which aligned perfectly with my interests. I applied and was fortunate to be accepted."

Adhikari is now one of the more than 3,500 international students from over 130 countries calling GW home. She noted that while she applied to several universities in the United States, GW stood out because of how responsive they were to her questions and that she felt a connection with admissions people who she felt genuinely wanted to help her succeed.

Nepal native Shambhavi Adhikari is growing in confidence navigating a new life chapter away from her native Nepal while pursuing a master's degree in data analytics at the George Washington University. (Ben Sorenson/GW Today)

She arrived on a rainy day in August ready to dive into the world of data analytics, which is the concept of taking raw and technical information and translating it to be more accessible and understandable-undoubtedly an important concept to learn for a machine learning engineer in this new artificial intelligence world.

That idea won't be just limited to her studies during the next two years. She is building a new life from scratch and must meet new friends and professors, network and learn-all while communicating in her non-native language, which requires constant translation in her mind.

"You create a new environment for yourself while navigating the challenges of studying and working on campus," said Adhikari, who had just begun a job as a tech support specialist at GW's Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Loudoun County. "It's quite a shift from being back home, where your parents guide you."

Her parents and family are still there for her from afar. She FaceTimes with her mother at least once daily, and Adhikari said their support has been constant both before and after the tears dried up from an emotional goodbye at the airport.

Adhikari is learning quickly to navigate this new challenge and new country independently. Despite the United States being generally faster paced than the life she was used to in Nepal, she is adjusting and growing just as fast.

"I thought I was confident back in Nepal, but living here has pushed me to grow even more," Adhikari said. "I've learned to connect with new people easily, which was a challenge before. The fast-paced environment requires me to be proactive about my studies and job searching, and I've developed skills like cooking and managing household tasks that I didn't do back home."

She doesn't always have to cook alone thanks to the community she's formed at GW. She formed a bond with other Nepali students attending GW even before they arrived. They all joined a WhatsApp group after acceptance and even met one another at the airport as they began their journeys east-way east.

Now that they are in D.C. and at GW, they often get together to cook traditional dishes. Recently, they made momo-Nepali dumplings-which all they have missed. "We even DIY-ed some cooking tools and were proud of how it turned out," said Adhikari, who is also grateful for the entire community at GW that has welcomed her and helped guide her in her first few months in the U.S.

"The people are very supportive, and the university offers various events where you can meet new friends," she said, noting that a scavenger hunt GW organized for international students at the start of the school year helped her discover university icons such as the Hippo statue and the George Gamow plaque on 21^st Street. "They listen to our stories and try to understand where we are coming from."

While her master's degree in data analytics remains the prize at the top of the mountain, Adhikari is enjoying the views and journey along the way. She appreciates spending an afternoon in Georgetown sitting by the waterfront and looks forward to eventually trekking some of the hills in Maryland and Virginia-though not quite reaching the points of elevation that exist within her own country.

She got to carve her first pumpkin in October, and she marveled at the vibrancy of fall colors in the Mid-Atlantic. And speaking of the region, Adhikari is especially enjoying the seafood scene since she has lived her whole life in a landlocked country. "I got to try calamari, which I really loved," she said. Adhikari also grew to like chicken and waffles, noting that she had to try it because of how strange the combination seemed.

When she does feel a little homesick, she connects with her Nepali peers to make traditional cuisine and share tea and biscuit time via screen with her mom on the other side of the world.

In May 2026, Adhikari will reach her summit at Commencement on the National Mall when she will be further armed with a skillset in data analytics that will propel her career in machine learning. Adhikari advises others across the world in her shoes who may be looking to begin their own treks to consider making GW their guide.

"I think it's a great place for [international students]," Adhikari said. "It's wonderful to think about the experiences I'm having here, and GW really excels in creating these small yet meaningful events for international students. Many of my friends have shown interest in learning about Nepal, and I enjoy sharing what life is like there. It's a great way to connect and foster understanding."