I got into university in Serbian
A student dorm cafeteria, a freshman questions an older student in Serbian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Здраво, ја сам нов овде. Уписао сам факултет ове године.» — Hi, I'm new here. I started university this year.; «Добро дошао! Који смер си уписао?» — Welcome! What did you enroll in? Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a student dorm cafeteria, a freshman questions an older student. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Здраво, ја сам нов овде. Уписао сам факултет ове године.Zdravo, ja sam nov ovde. Upisao sam fakultet ove godine.Hi, I'm new here. I started university this year.
- Добро дошао! Који смер си уписао?Dobro došao! Koji smer si upisao?Welcome! What did you enroll in?
- Биологију. Предавања почињу већ у понедељак.Biologiju. Predavanja počinju već u ponedeljak.Biology. Lectures start as early as Monday.
- Онда ти одмах треба уџбеник који сви траже. Нема га у књижари.Onda ti odmah treba udžbenik koji svi traže. Nema ga u knjižari.Then right away you need the textbook everyone is looking for. The store doesn't have it.
- А где да га нађем? Немам довољно новца за нов.A gde da ga nađem? Nemam dovoljno novca za nov.And where can I find it? I don't have enough money for a new one.
- У библиотеци дома. Ја бих ти позајмио свој, ја сам већ положио тај испит.U biblioteci doma. Ja bih ti pozajmio svoj, ja sam već položio taj ispit.In the dorm library. I'd lend you mine; I've already passed that exam.
- Хвала ти пуно! А да ли је тежак? Чуо сам да многи падну.Hvala ti puno! A da li je težak? Čuo sam da mnogi padnu.Thank you so much! Is it hard? I've heard many people fail.
- Компликован је, али ако понављаш градиво сваке недеље, положићеш из првог пута.Komplikovan je, ali ako ponavljaš gradivo svake nedelje, položićeš iz prvog puta.It's demanding, but if you review the material every week, you'll pass on the first try.
Lines one by one
| Serbian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Здраво, ја сам нов овде. Уписао сам факултет ове године. | Zdravo, ja sam nov ovde. Upisao sam fakultet ove godine. | Hi, I'm new here. I started university this year. |
| Добро дошао! Који смер си уписао? | Dobro došao! Koji smer si upisao? | Welcome! What did you enroll in? |
| Биологију. Предавања почињу већ у понедељак. | Biologiju. Predavanja počinju već u ponedeljak. | Biology. Lectures start as early as Monday. |
| Онда ти одмах треба уџбеник који сви траже. Нема га у књижари. | Onda ti odmah treba udžbenik koji svi traže. Nema ga u knjižari. | Then right away you need the textbook everyone is looking for. The store doesn't have it. |
| А где да га нађем? Немам довољно новца за нов. | A gde da ga nađem? Nemam dovoljno novca za nov. | And where can I find it? I don't have enough money for a new one. |
| У библиотеци дома. Ја бих ти позајмио свој, ја сам већ положио тај испит. | U biblioteci doma. Ja bih ti pozajmio svoj, ja sam već položio taj ispit. | In the dorm library. I'd lend you mine; I've already passed that exam. |
| Хвала ти пуно! А да ли је тежак? Чуо сам да многи падну. | Hvala ti puno! A da li je težak? Čuo sam da mnogi padnu. | Thank you so much! Is it hard? I've heard many people fail. |
| Компликован је, али ако понављаш градиво сваке недеље, положићеш из првог пута. | Komplikovan je, ali ako ponavljaš gradivo svake nedelje, položićeš iz prvog puta. | It's demanding, but if you review the material every week, you'll pass on the first try. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Serbian in this situation?
“Здраво, ја сам нов овде. Уписао сам факултет ове године.” (Zdravo, ja sam nov ovde. Upisao sam fakultet ove godine.) — Hi, I'm new here. I started university this year.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.