Courtesy of Ahsen Kadi

Ahsen Kadi, a first-year student from Katy, TX, has always been in touch with her identity and has manifested parts of it into her studies and future goals. Kadi is a political science and economics double-major and has thoroughly enjoyed Trinity’s academically rigorous culture. Before Kadi moved to the States, she lived in Turkey and Russia for many years. Kadi was born in Istanbul, Turkey and was assimilated into her cultural roots from her parent’s descent. Her mother is from Russia and her father is from Turkey. Kadi shared that she has always been involved in her academics and extracurricular activities and has translated those factors into being a strong student at Trinity.
“I got an email from Trinity when I was applying to colleges and I had no idea about the school,” Kadi said. “I asked my track coach at the time about the school and he really recommended that I go due to the strength of the academics.”
Kadi hopes to follow her family’s footsteps. Specifically, she wants to go into international business law because she is fluent in Russian, Turkish and English, and is currently learning Spanish. Kadi said that her grandfather served on the Turkish Supreme Court and that has inspired her to be in that field.
“When I was in high school, I worked at a Turkish center in Houston as a piano teacher, a volleyball coach and a Turkish language teacher,” Kadi said. “My biggest accomplishment has been that I was nominated to receive the Presidential Volunteer Gold Award by the U.S. which is a volunteer service award for completing more than 250 service hours. I really enjoyed being a mentor for little kids.”
Political and philosophical theories as well as economics and learning how the market works are just a few of the things that capture Kadi’s attention and keep her engaged in school. Over the summer, she is juggling two internships at a law firm and a district office in Houston. Kadi shared that taking time for herself looks like reading, putting on face masks and listening to audio books, and leaning on people around her when looking for support.”
“When it comes to school or even sometimes personal matters, if I have anything I really need to talk to someone I reach out to my econ teacher Professor Santos because he is so nice and I really appreciate getting advice from adults on certain matters,” Kadi said. “My friend Juan Sanchez has also been such a good support system for me and I know I can go to him about anything and everything.”
Kadi’s best advice for incoming students and others her age would be that you should always put in your best effort and do the best you can. Kadi argues that your value is based on who you are and what you accomplish rather than a grade or a number on your transcript.