EDINBURGH, Scotland — Lizbet Minchala had never set foot in Scotland in the spring of 2023 when she applied to a graduate school at the Edinburgh Business School at Heriot-Watt University through the Football Scholars program.
As she was finishing up her project supply chain management degree at Penn State Beaver, Minchala said, she knew she wanted to continue her education, and she knew she wanted to see more of the world.
After attending high school in Queens, New York, she chose Penn State Beaver after speaking to a recruiter about athletic opportunities and visiting the campus for the annual Spirit Weekend for prospective student athletes.
“It was a good weekend. Everyone was very welcoming,” she said. She wanted to play soccer and, she said, she knew she would have that chance at Beaver.
New surroundings
While western Pennsylvania was a big change from Queens, Minchala said she liked being in a smaller area and on a smaller campus, and she appreciated the sense of community on campus and in the residence hall.
“No one would pass by without saying ‘hi.’ There were lots of activities in place to get to know people. I met commuters in the [Bistro], and the clubs were helpful,” she said. “I always knew I wouldn’t do that well in a big uni.”
She said she enjoyed learning about things like country and music and hunting during her time in western Pennsylvania.
Minchala, who was a student-athlete and involved in many clubs on campus, said she appreciated her professors, noting Dan Smith and Karen Barr, associate teaching professors of business, who she said taught her a lot, and Abdurrezzak Sener, assistant professor of project and supply chain management and Minchala’s academic adviser, who helped her decide to continue her education to help her career in the future.
More of the world
She learned about the chance to play soccer overseas and earn a master’s degree from another Penn State Beaver alumnus. She said she was accepted into two universities but ultimately chose Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh because it felt like a good fit.
Much like going from Queens, New York to Monaca, Pennsylvania, she said there was a period of adjustment as she acclimated to life in Scotland. She said all she knew before arriving there was what she had learned from watching YouTube videos, which she said turned out not to be very helpful.
She said she got used to her new surroundings and the pace of her university classes. Now that she has a master’s degree in logistics and supply chain management, she said she plans to stay in the United Kingdom. She’s not only looking for a job, but she has been recruited to play soccer — “football” if you’re in the U.K. — for a local women’s league that was recently started by the Hibernian Football Club.
Minchala may be overseas, but she said she is still in contact with friends she made while at Beaver campus. “We got to do everything together,” she said.