Hadisa Zahirzai, an Afghan native, embarked on her international business studies in Temple Rome’s Entry Year Program in the fall of 2025. 

Temple’s Rome Entry Year (TREY) Program offers students the unique opportunity to begin their undergraduate education globally at the campus, choosing from more than 50 degree programs, before continuing their remaining three years at Temple’s Main Campus in Philadelphia or its Japan campuses in Tokyo and Kyoto.  

For Hadisa Zahirzai, a first-year undergraduate majoring in international business, TREY made a Temple education possible. 

Zahirzai’s road to Temple Rome was long. She initially planned to study computer science in her home country of Afghanistan. However, when the Taliban regained control of her country in 2021 and implemented a ban on women attending private and public universities, she had to pivot.  

“My father always encouraged me to pursue education, despite growing up in a tribe where a woman’s education was not supported,” she added. “I told myself that I should not give up; this is not the end of my story.” 

In December 2024, Zahirzai planned to travel to Doha, Qatar, for a refugee interview that would grant her travel documents for U.S. residency. But an executive order the following month suspended the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, creating another setback to attending a university.  

Faced with another obstacle, she began exploring alternative pathways to pursue her education. She first learned about Temple Rome while exploring universities that could support international students. The university’s global staff guided her toward an achievable pathway to the university’s Rome campus despite her travel restrictions. 

“As someone coming from Afghanistan, access to higher education has not always been guaranteed,” she said. “When I first learned about Temple Rome, I immediately felt a sense of community. Temple’s staff offered a global entry pathway to college that changed everything for me. 

“From the application process to arriving on campus, the staff made me feel supported and welcomed,” she added. “They even helped me in the process of getting me an interview so I could get an Italian visa, which would not have been possible without their support.”  

Once on Rome’s campus, Zahirzai was amazed by the academic environment. With classes located at Via di San Sebastianello 16, adjacent to the Spanish Steps in Rome’s historic city center, her studies are placed in the heart of European history. The program offers students the opportunity to participate in class excursions around Rome, Italy and Europe. 

“My interest in studying international business comes from my love of traveling and meeting people from new cultures, which I am really grateful that Temple Rome allows us the opportunity to experience,” said Zahirzai, who has also thrived there academically and made Temple’s Dean List. “I hope my story shows that if Afghan girls are given the opportunity, they too can make most of it.” 

The campus is also in close proximity for students to experience historic landmarks such as the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. 

“Whenever I look at the tallest buildings, I am just wondering how people were able to build such structures,” she said. “I could not believe the height of the Colosseum and seeing the Pantheon in person. There are also so many churches with beautiful architecture and decorations. What makes the campus especially exciting is that there are still many places I have yet to explore.”  

What also drew Zahirzai to the Temple Rome campus experience is the diverse student body and how professors use real-life business examples to make classroom learning practical and engaging, saying that the smaller classes allow for more meaningful interaction. 

“Like in one of the classes, we have been given real-life tasks to evaluate and analyze, like different laws and things related to business,” she said. “Having the smaller classes makes it easier to be engaged with professors to ask questions and have open discussions like sharing my story and hearing the cultural experiences from other international students.”

She added that she also enjoys some of the elective courses that Temple Rome offers, including the painting and yoga classes. Throughout each semester or summer, students can also engage actively with members of the local community through several events, including cooking classes, gallery openings, lectures with experts in various fields and more.  

Zahirzai’s ultimate career goal is to further her work in women’s empowerment and education. She hopes to build an international organization that connects women entrepreneurs, particularly those from her home country, Afghanistan, to succeed in global markets. 

“I have seen many talented Afghan women design jewelry, embroidery and other crafts, but the male in the family is the only one profiting off the items they make,” she said. “So, I have a vision to connect Afghan women with international markets where they can sell their products for themselves and become more self-dependent. 

“Education is a powerful form of freedom and when everything is taken away from us, it can give us a voice,” she added. “I learned even a single step is worth the risk to go and study abroad because it’s not only about studying but about finding who you are.”    

More students will soon have an opportunity to follow in Zahirzai’s footsteps, only this time, they can stay in Rome even longer. Beginning this fall, Temple Rome will partner with five of Temple’s schools and colleges to offer a total of 18 different four-year undergraduate degree programs that can entirely be completed at the international campus.