Exchange student slammed over 'entitled' rant: 'Comes off as insufferable'

An American student's essay on her time spent in Italy has received widespread backlash after detailing how much she hated living away from New York City.

Stacia Datskovska, a journalism and international relations major, spent a semester abroad in Florence, but says it was nothing like she expected — remarks which had her labelled as "entitled" and "insufferable".

In a piece written for Insider, Ms Datskovska said although she had high hopes for her time in the city, she hated her seven roommates and said the Italian locals were "hostile". She also "grew to despise the sights, hated the people, and couldn't wait to get back home to my campus in New York", and felt that she was "wasting precious time" living in the city.

"I’m not quite sure whom I resented more during my stay in Italy: my American classmates or the locals," she wrote in the essay. She also expressed her angst about travelling to other European cities on weekends and said it "seemed like an exhausting form of escapism" to her.

Student's essay goes viral on Twitter

The student's take on Florence sparked fury and frustration among many who shared their thoughts on Twitter. The essay has since gone viral being reshared across the platform

One said "the student comes off as insufferable" after reading her views, while another said, "that whole piece dripped with entitlement & jealousy".

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Others said it appears she "suffered from bad culture shock" and that an "idealised view of a foreign country" is to blame.

"Finding out Florence is not New York and Europeans are not Americans must have been brutal," read one sarcastic tweet.

Some said the young woman has "no self-awareness" but one disagreed. "Sounds like she’s very self-aware," they said, prompting a flurry of responses.

"She crapped on her roommates, crapped on the city, crapped on the locals, and went out of her way to be offensive & prove a stereotype But I guess she was aware she was doing these things and wrote all about it, so, sure, self-aware," one shot back.

"It's fine to not enjoy your semester abroad, I just don't understand the desire to voluntarily roast yourself in an article about it," another wrote.

Cheeky response from infamous exchange student Amanda Knox

The essay was also reshared by infamous exchange student Amanda Knox, who was accused of killing her roommate while studying abroad in Italy.

"Girl, what are you talking about? Studying abroad is awesome!" Knox joked in a now-viral Tweet.

But some were a little more empathetic of Ms Datskovska and her time spent abroad. One person agreed that travelling solo to a foreign country can make someone feel alone. Meanwhile, another said they "understand feeling like no one shares her values" and "missing home," but feels that she should’ve made "the most of her time" abroad.

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