Throughout the years, AUBG seniors have stood on the ABF lawn with caps on and gowns draped heavily, carrying memories, knowledge, and friendships. And once the tassels were turned, a new chapter of life began. Little did they know that nostalgia would begin to follow them only months after graduation.
They found themselves pulled back by cherished memories, late-night conversations, and most importantly, the people. Some alumni returned just months after graduating, while for others, more than a decade had passed. At the AUBG MegAAA Alumni Reunion, alumni shared what made AUBG special to them then, and continues to do so today.
Emil Hayrumyan (‘25)
Vlad Muntean (‘15)
“It’s not just academia”
For Emil Hayrumyan (‘25), a message he heard during Orientation Week became a leitmotif throughout his journey and beyond.
“The learning experience is not just academia, but also all of those experiences outside of it,” he recalled hearing during his first days at AUBG. “You get the objective knowledge from academia, but the extracurriculars shape your personality.”
This is what pushed him to try everything AUBG had to offer and join different communities, which helped shape his identity and continue to influence him today, as he still tries to apply that mindset to his professional life.
And what does he miss most? “The people. One hundred percent the people,” Emil said. “I came back during Spring break when campus was emptier, and I expected to feel nostalgia from the buildings. But without the people, I couldn’t feel it. That’s when I was reassured that it’s always about the people.”
Vlad Muntean (‘15) shares a similar feeling when reflecting on his years at AUBG. Looking back, some of his strongest memories unfolded outside the classroom.
“Since my freshman year, I’ve been doing different things,” he said. “My senior year was the most fun. I was president of TEDx, I was in the musical, I was in plays. It was a very vivid social life.”
Returning years later felt surreal for Vlad as well. “It’s like a time capsule,” he reflected. “Everybody’s looking a bit older, but somehow still the same person you knew back in the day.”
Tsvetiana Ilieva (‘17)
Tsvetiana Ilieva (‘17) (first from the left)
The moment no one wanted to leave
For Tsvetiana Ilieva (‘17), AUBG was packed full of memories, as she was actively involved in multiple aspects of university life.
Tsvetiana remembers the professors who changed her path entirely. She came to AUBG planning to study Business Administration and Mathematics, with Journalism and Mass Communication only as a minor. Then she took a Multimedia Journalism course with Professor Melody Gilbert. “That was it,” she said. “No more maths. JMC was the way to go.”
She remembers fondly other JMC professors, such as Rossen Petkov and Lynnette Leonard, who she considered a mentor.
“All of these professors have had an impact on me as a person and later as a professional in one way or another,” Tsvetiana shared.
The pinnacle of her AUBG journey was the Broadway Performance Club. She fondly remembers the cast of “Rock of Ages” gathered in a room in Skaptopara for a screening of the performance after finishing a tour. Later that evening, the seniors walked to ABF to hang the musical poster.
“None of us wanted to leave,” she remembered. “We just stayed there, staring at the poster, talking and crying. It was a very emotional moment.”
Lilia Petrova (‘25)
Maha Afif (‘25)
A full circle moment
Some memories are difficult to reduce to one moment. “I can name at least ten events from every year that turned me into a different person,” said Lilia Petrova (‘25).
Lilia remembers the sense of community and connectedness that welcomed her during her very first all-campus picnic at the start of her journey. “Seeing all the people being so open and ready to make new friends, opened me up too,” she shares.
Fast-forward four years, and Lilia found herself in the same spot once again. “Finishing with the last all-campus picnic in our fourth year and the parties we had as a class at the end of the year really closed the chapter beautifully.”
Everything in between, including the clubs, professors, friendships, and events, became etched into her memory. “All of this stayed like a little part of me that will always be there.”
Maha Afif (’25) also had a full circle realization at the end of her AUBG journey. “During Commencement, my family met all the professors I’d had over the four years,” she said. “It felt like a full circle moment, seeing the people who got me here and the people who helped me from the beginning of my AUBG journey to the very end, meet each other.”
The day was so emotional for her that this is the only thing she remembers. Now working at AUBG herself, Maha says she sees the university differently, but with the same sense of connection that first drew her to it.
Sonya Volkhonskaya (‘14)
Sonya Volkhonskaya (‘14) (on the right)
The professor who stayed with them
For Sonya Volkhonskaya (‘14), it was the professors who shaped her journey most deeply. She was an active part of the theatre, having performed in at least two plays every year under the guidance of Professor Nedyalko Delchev. “It’s amazing to see that he has not having changed one bit in 15 years,” Sonya shared. “I guess it must be true what they say that surrounding yourself with young people keeps you young too.”
But when she speaks about the late Professor Cosmina Tanasoiu, her voice still changes. “She was a great influence on a lot of people in our group and a big example of a real adult who takes you seriously regardless of where you are in your development.”
Even at the reunion, Sonya and her friends were remembering Professor Tanasoiu fondly. “It would be so nice to talk to her right now,” she reflected.
Ekaterina Mihajlovic (‘08) also mentioned Prof. Tanasoiu as one of the defining figures that made an impact on her.
“She played a very big role in teaching us to be very diligent and extremely focused on performance. She was a perfectionist in many ways and managed to get us excited about learning, which is very difficult to do,” said Ekaterina.
Ekaterina Mihajlovic (‘08)
Nikola Mihajlovic (‘08)
The community that continues
For Ekaterina, AUBG was a key part not only of her education, but also informed her entire life trajectory. At AUBG, she met her now husband. “We knew each other here, at AUBG, but we only started dating later through the alumni network,” she shares.
Now, years later, she returned to campus with her husband, Nikola Mihajlovic (’08), and their daughter, who was attending an alumni reunion for the second time in her life. The first time, she was only six months old.
For her husband, Nikola Mihajlovic (‘08), another defining memory was being part of AUBG Olympics – a community that remains an important campus tradition to this day.
“When I was a student, I helped organize one of the first editions,” he shared. “I was in charge of the basketball tournament, and it was a lot of fun. It’s nice to see that it still lives on and students continue to be part of it.”
AUBG alumni have gone on to build careers, families, communities, and lives across the world. As they returned to campus for the MegAAA Alumni Reunion, many of them were reminded that what stays after AUBG is the people, professors, and moments that continue to be part of their lives long after graduation.
And while their lives after AUBG may have unfolded in different ways, the memories they carry remain deeply connected to the place where so many of their stories began.
