The 19-year-old former St Hilda's Collegiate School pupil left Dunedin in August to take up a four-year scholarship at Coastal Carolina University.
She expected it was going to be a lot of hard work and, at first, it really was a slog.
''It is pretty intense,'' Scott said.
''But it has been so good for my tennis. Coming from Dunedin, I've never really had that exposure and you do so much training.
''It was [a shock] at the start. I was absolutely exhausted. We just did so much and we did all this fitness which I just wasn't used to. It was constant. Now I'm kind of used to it.''
All that graft paid off for Scott. She led her team - the Chanticleers - with 17 wins from 21 matches, was named the 2013 Big South freshman of the year and made the all-conference singles team.
She partnered with Dominique de Wit in the doubles and the pair forged an impressive record, winning 18 of their 21 matches.
But the Chanticleers were not as successful as a team. That made Scott's personal triumphs a little hard to celebrate.
''When you win your matches and everyone else doesn't, you don't know whether to be sad or happy,'' Scott said.
''But it is all right. The girls are really nice and everybody is trying really hard.''
Scott used to have to fly to Auckland in the weekends to get tougher competition when she lived in Dunedin. But exposure to high-level competition and help from coach Catherine Hewitt has seen the teenager make big strides with her game.
''My coach, Catherine, has been so good for my tennis. She puts in so much time and is always helping with private lessons. That has been the main reason my tennis has come on.''
Scott studies exercise and sports science and plans to minor in psychology.
Balancing her studies with her tennis commitments is a struggle. Basically, Scott spends about three hours a day training. An hour of that is on the tennis court with the remainder spent either in the gym or on the track, building up her fitness and working on her speed. Sunday is a rest day.
She lives in an apartment with other athletes.
''The whole uni scene is like American movies,'' she said.
Scott returns to the States in early August. In the meantime, she has landed a temporary job at the Otago Daily Times, filling in as the editorial assistant.
As well as working fulltime, she has a fitness programme to keep up with and she plans to play as much tennis as possible. She does not want to slip backwards having put in so much hard work.
