Farishta Arzoo

My name is Farishta Arzoo and I am from Afghanistan.

I came to Australia in 2015 as a refugee from Afghanistan. I had no educational background at all when I arrived. I started to study at Dickson College and spent two years there before enrolling in the Certificate IV in Spoken and Written English for Further Study (10365NAT) course at CIT.

The English classes really helped me to develop all my reading, writing, speaking and listening skills, as well as my confidence. They also helped me to develop my vocabulary; I was learning new words every day!

The text types I learned in English class - essays, reports, presentations and so on, set me up well for my next step in my career.

The classes were interesting and also a lot of fun! We had a community within the course and it was great for networking; I met people from many different countries who spoke many different languages. We went on excursions to learn more about Australian culture and we had a fantastic party at the end of the course.

Whilst studying English at CIT, I had the opportunity to participate in other activities which I was introduced to through the English course. I became a Global Sister and I participated in the First Hike Project. I am now training hard to participate in the Refugee Marathon Project.

After I completed the Certificate IV in Spoken and Written English for Further Study (10365NAT), I enrolled in the Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and Merchandising (MST50119), which I have just completed.

I was the only student from a non-English speaking background on the course and when I first started the course I always felt embarrassed and tended to overthink things.

I was afraid to speak for fear of making mistakes and I felt like giving up a number of times, but with the help and support of staff, I persevered and I have just received a High Distinction for my final assessment!

I exhibited my work at the 2019 Orange Wolves event which was a fantastic experience, but stressful too!

Once I have completed my CIT studies, I will be going to the ANU School of Art in 2020. My interest in art has come from the ideas I have in my head which I find difficult to express in words, but easy to express through art and colour. I have always been inspired by things that other people don’t necessarily find inspiring.

I would wholeheartedly recommend CIT as a place to study and must say that the best thing are the teachers - they are AMAZING! My success at CIT has been 50% down to me and 50% down to my amazing teachers.