In Their Own Words: Third-Year Francesca Gilbard on Her Dual BA Journey Thus Far

Prospective Major(s): Political Science

Going from a modest college town that falls asleep at dark to the uninterrupted buzz and abundant choice of New York City is like a polar plunge—but I’m ready to dive headlong. Amidst all the changes, one thing remains certain: although I may have left France, France will never leave me. Its lessons, perspectives, and friendships will accompany me as I welcome the new opportunities—and challenges—that come with hitting the ‘reset’ button halfway through my college career at a completely new institution. As my reverse culture shock softens, I’m left with the satisfaction of knowing that my universe has irreversibly expanded, rendering me smaller, yet wiser.

Selecting the Dual BA as my college choice meant I wouldn’t have to make any compromises. As a hyphenated American and francophone, my decision to move across the Atlantic for college was an intuitive one.

I was three years old when I first began learning French—but there’s a twist: I’m from Texas, and no one in my family speaks French. Understandably, the choice of a French immersion school over a Spanish one was puzzling for many. However, my unconventional, bilingual upbringing is what led me to my first ‘study abroad’ trip to France as a sophomore in high school. I spent a month with a host family in Toulouse, an experience so transformative that I did it again the following year in Lisbon. What began as high school summers abroad eventually evolved into a lease, a +33 phone number, a Société Générale bank account, a Carte Vitale, and, above all, a Sciences Po student ID.

As a Bulgarian American, I knew both sides of my identity could thrive in the Dual BA program—and they did. In Reims, I wasn’t sure if I was a Europeanized American or an Americanized European, but what I do know is that the international student body on campus enabled me to form friendships that reflect just how colorful identity can be.

For a long time, the most common question I received was also the hardest to answer: ‘So, after all this, Europe or the U.S.?’ Initially, I wrestled with the binary nature of the question, feeling pressured to pick between the two. However, a conversation with a foreign service officer at USAID soon made me realize that I don’t have to choose. In fact, embracing only one side would diminish the exact thing that makes me who I am today: my global mindedness. With a passion for thriving anywhere in the world, nurtured by the Dual BA program, I know I could never have just one home. So, my answer to that question? ‘Both—and beyond.’

When I recently discovered a new movie about the life of Veuve Clicquot, I knew I had to do my due diligence as a former resident of Champagne. I’m sure you could imagine my amusement when I noticed that the final scene was filmed in the ancient Jesuit refectory on my Sciences Po campus in Reims. Following this, I’m hoping for a movie about Madame Pommery. It’s the least she deserves after graciously hosting us every year at her Champagne house for the gala to end all galas.

I was honored to be the 2022 laureate of the Henri de Castries Scholarship, a merit award presented annually by the Sciences Po American Foundation to one student in either the Columbia or UC Berkeley Dual BA program with Sciences Po.

As part of Sciences Po’s civic learning program, I served refugee communities in Naples last June. This past summer, I applied my fieldwork and coursework insights at the Center for the Study of Democracy in Sofia, Bulgaria. As part of my internship, I grappled with the challenge of Russian malign influence alongside the American Ambassador to Bulgaria and celebrated NATO’s 75th anniversary with the Bulgarian Minister of Defense. Additionally, I contributed to promoting fundamental rights and expanding media freedom within the EU by developing proposals for the European Commission.

Unified progress begins with empathy. This belief has shaped my transcontinental academic journey, driving me to deepen my understanding of those who don’t share my religion, language, or flag—most recently in Saudi Arabia through the Gateway KSA program, for which I was interviewed by Reuters. Driven by my passion for the intersection between media relations and foreign policy, I aspire to build meaningful coalitions that can foster sustainable and inclusive change in our increasingly globalized world.

This year, you can find me giving campus tours as a new Dual BA student ambassador!