Meet Connie Ewen

I have known Connie for a few years now and I can 100% tell you she is one of the most intelligent, motivated and successful individuals especially in the feild of work that she does. Connie is a registered barrister and solicitor working in the law industry and is currently studying her Masters in Switzerland! Her story and passion around law is amazing and I wanted you all to read her journey and draw inspiration from her motivational personality and spark your own passions in culture and learning!

Meet Connie Ewen...

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF?

I never know what to say when I get asked this question...I am 24 years old, kiwi born and raised on the Hibiscus Coast (Auckland region for those who don't know). I am a registered barrister and solicitor of the Auckland High Court. I spent the last two years of my life working for the Auckland District Court before uprooting my life and moving to Bern, Switzerland to study my masters. I am a not-so-secret nerd, I love reading and learning new things. I also love the outdoors, hiking and tramping, just exploring any new environment I can and trying to drag my friends along for the ride. I am a family gal, it's a huge part of my being and I love spending time with all my family immediate and extended. I am a lazy-cook and a leftover queen, I will eat the same dish 3 times in a row and be happy about it haha. I was a volunteer firefighter in my home town for a while - that was a very cool and rewarding experience, something anyone should try!

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN SIX WORDS?

Independent, Resilient, Studious, Adventurous, Reliable & Straight forward

WHAT DO YOU STUDY AND WHY?

I have an undergraduate degree in law from the University of Canterbury and during that I took mostly international law courses, I was approached by my professor to do my masters in international investment law so I chose to follow that recommendation and now I am getting a LLM. in International Trade Investment Law combined with an Advanced Diploma in International Economic Studies (a mouthful I know).

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO STUDY OVERSEAS?

I chose to go overseas because when I discussed the advantages of a masters degree with my professor he mentioned that it's best to experience a range of teaching and law styles, because in Europe they follow he civil law system whereas at home we prescribe to common law. I did a bunch of research on overseas masters programs in my field of internet and applied to three schools, all of which I got into which made choosing super difficult!

I think covid also played a big role in my decision too, I lost job opportunities in the legal field because of spending and availability and I (like everyone else) couldn't do any travelling so I felt like going overseas was the best way to progress my studies and when the opportunities came for me to choose a school in Europe I didn't hesitate to get that OE and degree together. I eventually decided that Switzerland was the best fit because of the "double degree" structure and it's close ties to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). I felt like it would be a great networking opportunity and I would learn heaps from the professors here.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AND PASSIONS AROUND LAW?

This is a cool question, not one you ever really get asked as a lawyer: there is no rhyme or reason as to why I chose a law degree, I originally wanted to be a sports physician so if someone can explain how I ended up as a lawyer that'd be great!

I have always been a studious person, even if I didn't love school I was good at it so university for me was the next natural step and when I started law school I was good at it, I couldn't not follow it. I honestly have to say it took me until 3rd year when I was choosing my own electives and tailoring the degree to my interests that I really started to like law and found this passion for it. I have always been interested in International law, originally I was joining the Air Force to be a legal officer so I chose all the international electives I could to better me chances at getting a job. Through that I found that I could really understand law and the procedures and rules. International law is this abstract being because it's not more powerful than sovereign law and it's not this overarching being, it's something that States chose to be a part of and a system that developed through cooperation.

I'm not sure that answers the question but really I have to say partly my choices that led to where I am now had to do with my professor and how engaging and supportive they were. I have to shout out my trade investment professor from UC Chris Riffel who engaged with me and was so encouraging that I felt I had the backing to take the steps in me career and studies that I probably wouldn't have even considered otherwise.

I am passionate about how the world works and how to work better for the future and for me. Trade and investment on the international level between states and global companies are the most impactful industry sectors without a doubt. They have an impact on liberally every part of your life from how you get to work, to what you eat, and what you get to watch on Netflix. The while world including the environment you're in are impacted by global trade and investment and those things are facilitated by the law - international and domestic. This revelation for me just makes me want to know how it works and what happens when things fail or countries behave like children throwing tantrums (which surprisingly happens a lot...especially in the super power countries...) and I want to be a part of facilitating growth for my country and globally bridging the divide between developed and developing countries; but also sustainability, we can't ignore climate change so what can we do within our industries and legally to make sure we're around for a lot longer and in a happy healthy way - trade and investment law development can fundamentally change how the world works, I want to make sure those developments are sustainable and beneficial for my family and everyone else.

HOW HAVE YOU FOUND THE CULTURE CHANGE SO FAR?

Surprisingly it's not too difficult. Where I live in Bern, is a multilingual city, the main languages are German, and then French but nearly everyone I have interacted with has spoken at least some English. It helps that I know some neccesary German phrases (like "do you speak English" and "please & thank you"). I would honestly say Switzerland is "Europes NZ" purely based on landscape; so it was pretty easy to feel accommodated here. That's not to say I didn't cry hard when I arrived because I realised just how far away I was from everyone and everything I ever knew. I am trying to learn French because it's a little more universal for the future so hopefully by the time I have to leave (or ideally get to work here) I'll at least have conversational French!

HOW DO YOU FIND JUGGLING LIFE AND STUDY?

Oh my god, so hard. This fall semester I am taking 7 classes...it's rough. The work load is pretty huge and on top of classes I have two thesis papers to write so I would say free-time is pretty limited. We have gone to some pretty prestigious events like in September we went to the World Trade Public Forum which the WTO hold to discuss the global trade issues and what solutions might come about. It was a really incredible experience and one that led me to being invited to the New Zealand embassy for a reception with our permanent Trade Representative to Geneva and other industry leaders which really was incredible. So social life is really just networking events but I make time for myself at the beginning of end of each day to just chill, do yoga and talk with family. I also make time to do some exploring on my weekends, in Switzerland shops are closed on Sundays so the only options really are to wonder around and explore your city it's a really cool idea and SO many people are out doing hikes and just seeing what's around. And my spring semester is much lighter so I am saving all my spare change to so more wider trips then! Paris is my spring break plan!

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOUR NOT STUDYING?

I'm studying 90% of my time at the moment trying to be a good student doing all my many readings haha; but when I stop for a bit I have been doing lots of yoga from YouTube or the Nike Training App; It's honestly my favourite way to seperate my study time with my wind down time. I call home a lot and speak to my best friend Amber or my family (mostly to sneak a peak of my dogs (kidding)). I have made some really cool friends from Poland and Belgium, Ola and Laura respectively, and we often meet in the old town and explore things in Bern.

WHERE HAVE YOU TRAVELED TO SO FAR?

So far I have spent time in France, I spent a week in Mulhouse with me cousin and his partner which is close to the border between France and Switzerland we explored Colmar, Strasbourg and a few other little towns around the border which was really amazing and in Switzerland so far I have been in Bern and Geneva both are super cool places. The buildings here are so exciting to me because back home we just don't have the same history or the same infrastructure...we're not as old as Europe by a long shot so it's honestly just exciting walking the streets.

WHAT'S BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE MOMENT SO FAR IN SWITZERLAND?

Man that's a hard question! The whole experience so far has had this overwhelming newness to it that event going to the supermarket is fun for me right now!

So far, I think my favourite day in Switzerland was when we finished classes for the day and then Ola and I just decided to wonder through old town and ended up going to the overside of town to what's called "Baren Park" (it's basically a bear pit) with 3 big bears just wondering around - it's more humane then it sounds haha; we saw the old town, watched the bears for a bit and then went to the old tra stop-turned restaurant where we had a beer and taste flambé (a French style thin crust pizza) where we just sat and chatted for a couple hours in the sun overlooking old town and the river.

It was the first week of university so I think I was feeling a bit shy and nervous so it was this really cool unplanned outing that just made me feel like "ok this won't be the hardest thing I have ever done". So even though it wasn't this like crazy adventure experience I think it's my favourite to date.

WHAT IS SOME HISTORY AROUND BERN?

Bern is the oldest legal "hub" in the world, it's been a centre for law and law studies since the Middle Ages. It's named after a bear the founder named it "after an animal he met on the hunt" and the coat of arms has a bear on it. Probably also why the Bear Park is such an attraction here! The old town is actually a UNESCO Cultural World Heritage site.

DO YOU HAVE A DREAM THAT YOU WOULD LOVE TO FULFIL?

This is a very philosophical question haha.

I have a super nerdy professional dream of been asked to write a chapter in a book about an industry topic; like to be known well enough and to understand or develop a topic so well that the industry experts ask for y comments on something - that would be unreal.

My personal goal is just to enjoy every experience, I have veen seeing online this trend I guess about romanticising your life and honestly there's a degree of doing that which isn't helpful or worth it but I think in most aspects you can romanticise your day. Looking at it positively and binging recognition that something is a great experience even as little as taking the train to university can have a huge impact on your mood and how you remember your time. I might only be in Europe for this year of study, so the goal is to romanticise the shit out of my life including all the mundane experiences of food, shopping, drinking coffee and riding the train.

WHATS THE HARDEST THING ABOUT LIVING OVERSEAS?

It's absolutely being away from family and my friends for me, I am such a homebosy and prior to leaving I lived at home with my dad to Dave money and I loved it. I have moved away from home twice now (like different island to different continent) so I know what it's like being away but this is different, it's really easy to feel like everyone else's life is continuing without you. I love seeing my friends and family make moves and do exciting things don't get me wrong, but that feeling of wanting to experience it with them is something I definitely struggle with, it's not so easy to just pop home and visit anymore. I thought making friends would be hard but I have been lucky in that aspect I have a support system here but nothing beats getting a hug from your dad when you're upset or having a bad day.

WHAT'S YOUR ADVICE TO ANY PERSON WANTING TO STUDY OVERSEAS?

Plan. Without a doubt it requires planning especially if you're moving super far away, I had a whole spread sheet of initial costs and needs haha

• Know what visa or permit you need to live there

• When you are allowed to work (in Switzerland I have to wait 6 months before I can look for a job)

• How much money you will need to support yourself and budgeting is next level important

• On that point, get an international card/account. I use WISE and it has the money in local currency + super easy to use (not a sponsor lol)

• Be passionate about what you want to study, it's not worth the emotional stress of "re-starting" in a foreign land without a support system unless you really really want it.

• Get things that make it feel like home, put up pictures, get fairy lights - buy those homey things. It makes the worlds of difference to how comfortable you feel even if they seem like unnecessary purchases, for your mental health, they're not.

• Have fun, anything you get invited to do, just go. *be safe obviously* but don't miss out on those memories.