[kanishka]

International Students: Do's and Don't

BY MACINSIDERS INSIDERS AGENT KANISHKA GOEL (goelk)

While studying abroad does spell excitement and freedom, adjusting to the ways of a new country and a new culture may not be all that easy. The following are a few dos and don'ts that I have developed to ease your anxiety of all that you may need to do in order to get accustomed to your study destination.

Don'ts

• Please don’t fake an accent; when we try to pull one off on others, with what we think is an American or British or Canadian accent, the result is hilarious (for the them) and embarrassing (for you). Be proud of your English and of your nationality.
• Don't convert every dollar you spend into rupees, it will make you want to kill yourself at the end of the shopping trip. When you realize you have spent 5000 rupees on your stationery, you will understand what this statement means.
• Don't judge people because they are sexually involved with the opposite or even the same sex. If you cannot accept the society in which you will spend the next three to four years, you cannot be happy.
• Having said that, don't feel compelled to be sexually involved with your boyfriend/ girlfriend at college. The phrase, when in Rome do as the Romans, does not apply strictly. Nothing should compel you to do something that goes against your culture and ethics.
• Similarly, don't succumb to peer pressure with alcohol and drugs. Firstly, it is common sense not to pump harmful toxins into your body, secondly, the drinking age varies in every country and you don't want to get in trouble with the law. Thirdly, you must realize that if something goes drastically wrong for your friends, their parents will immediately be by their side, whereas if you get into trouble with the law or college administration, you could instantly be deported back home.
• Don't take the law in your country of study lightly. You cannot slip a policeman a 50 rupee note if you get in trouble which makes me re-emphasize the dangers of alcohol and drug usage on campus. Even J-walking could land you with a fine.
• Don't call your parents five times a day. Firstly, your phone bills are going to be horrendously long. Secondly, you will never get over your homesickness if you call mom and friends back home every now and then.
• In the same way, don't make your parents stay with you for an entire month at your college because when your mother arranges your wardrobe and father applies for a bank account, the entire point of 'living on your own' is lost.
• Don't stick to your countrymen in college. It is natural to feel comfortable around people who share your language and look like you, but enjoy the diversity of an international community.
• Don't be intimidated by the local students. They are nice people just like you and specially if you are coming to a university like Mac where everyone is very friendly. Interact with them and make friends – you will realize that they are no different from you at the end of the day.
• Don't bring unnecessary luggage. There are several reasons for this. Your college room is going to be small. Plus your college might want you to empty your room for Christmas or fall break and handling eight suitcases on your way back home is no easy task.
• Please don't feel like you need to dress to kill. The dress code at college is pajamas, t-shirt and untidy hair. You will look out of place in your Gucci coat.
• The public transport which is available is extremely inexpensive, and is included in your school fees, so use it!
• Don't overburden yourself with a trillion extra-curricular in the first semester. Start slow, find your feet and get a feel for the mode of education. Being involved in ten clubs in the first semester, collapsing mid-term and scoring a 2.0 GPA is not such a good idea after all.
• And most importantly, don't go running back home if your first weeks are not that great. Give it time – a month, a semester and sometimes even a year. You will settle down and you will grow to love your new home.

Do's:

• Live on a student budget. The point of studying abroad is managing in little money. So if your father is suggesting a 100 dollar weekly allowance, say no.
• Similarly, it's perhaps a good idea to opt for on campus jobs (because the visa regulations don't allow an off-campus job for non-resident students) made available by MSU or Athletic and Recreation Centre. Waiting on tables and cleaning other people's dirty dishes really make you see the beauty of labour and the pleasure of hard earned money.
• Talking about on-campus jobs, apply for Social Insurance Number (SIN) when you get here so that you will be able to apply for those jobs. If you don't have SIN, you can't apply!
• Exercise. Keep yourself fit and healthy. Mac has an awesome fitness center called Pulse and an awesome Athletics and Recreation center. Make use of it!! You are paying for it!!
• Make yourself busy. Try different extracurricular activities – write for the newspaper or MacInsiders, join the fencing team and volunteer to mentor children every Saturday. This way you will not only meet different people and will also be too busy to be homesick but it will also help your resume later on. Remember one thing that doing well in academics is not the only thing the employers in US or Canada are looking for. They need a resume full of ECs too. So don't forget to take part in programs like Mary .E. Keyes Leadership programs, etc. Just make sure you're not doing too much.
  
• Be proud of your nationality. Don't feel the need to Westernize yourself to fit in. On the other hand, try to bring your culture (through films or even your dressing sense) to your college and you will be surprised at how much it is appreciated.
• Make sure you are safe. If your classes get over late in the night like Economics and if your rez is far off then call in for SWHAT members as they will escort you till your residence.
• If you have certain electronic devices bought from your own country, don't forget to bring a converter for the electrical socket as you might need one if it is not compatible with the socket available here.
• On that note, buy a good laptop if finances permit. Your computer is going to be your trusty companion for the next four years – there is campus-wide free Wi-Fi in Mac, and going to a library for every assignment can be tiresome.
• Make a special effort towards your roommate. A roommate is a strange hybrid of a friend (because he/ she is your age and shares your college experience) and a sibling (because you have no choice but to live with him/ her). You should negotiate some issues, like whether you can bring a friend to your room at night or play music after dark, before the beginning of the academic year.
• Buy your books online. Each semester, an average university student spends about $700 on their textbooks. This expenditure cannot be helped but can be significantly reduced by buying used books from our bookstore Titles or better yet MACINSIDERS! You will probably save about $200 this way. And remember, at the end of the semester you can put these books up for sale at reduced prices and make some money.
• On the subject of a phone in Canada , to call your native country, the best thing to do is to get a calling card from COMPASS or Student Centre Pharmacy. It will only cost you about 10 cents a minute to call home. But another good idea would be to get Skype, a free software downloadable online, which allows you to call another computer anywhere in the world.
• Learn to do your laundry because there are only so many times you can wear the same underwear. You will eventually have to venture into the dark hallways of the laundry room, might as well do it early.
• Enjoy the time while you are here, Mac is a great University and you may never again get to visit a university like Mac again!!

However, there is little you could learn about living abroad by simply reading about it. Nothing prepares you for the initial shock of being completely displaced from your comfort zone. Some people adjust immediately, some take time, but eventually everyone grows to love it.

If you have further doubts then you could always look into this article by another international student, AJ Joshi. OR post a question or two on the MacInsiders threads!

[~*Sara*~]

Cool thread goelk! Really helpful for international students.. and some points even apply to locals as well

[DannyV]

Good article, however it seems you copied it from somewhere. If not, in Canada college is different than university so international students shouldn't confuse the two.

[_Luu_]

"Don't stick to your countrymen in college. It is natural to feel comfortable around people who share your language and look like you, but enjoy the diversity of an international community."

Agreed. Doing so could hamper your English skills.
(Not saying that you should totally avoid your own kind. )

[feonateresa]

"Learn to do your laundry because there are only so many times you can wear the same underwear."

Haha, amazing advice.

[jhan523]

Originally Posted by feonateresa

"Learn to do your laundry because there are only so many times you can wear the same underwear."

Haha, amazing advice.

Hmmm, what is the recommended amount of times?

[feonateresa]

Originally Posted by jhan523

Hmmm, what is the recommended amount of times?

For a girl? I'd say once. For a typical guy? ... I don't want to know.

[jhan523]

Originally Posted by feonateresa

For a girl? I'd say once. For a typical guy? ... I don't want to know.

Lol, I only wear my underwear once before washing. Jeans are different though... I should probably wash them more often, but whatever.

[goodnews.inc]

One thing I'd like to add to all international students is that you should always feel comfortable in your environment.

That means doing what you love, while being considerate of other people.
To elaborate:
Practicing the Ooompah Loompah dance at 1 AM, even if you ARE an Oompah Loompah won't be appreciated.

But if you feel like you're being ostracized by the people you associate with for wearing your Oompah Loompah shirt or hat....don't feel obligated to change who you are.

Instead, move away from a crowd that isolates you for exhibiting different behaviour (unless this behaviour is harming you or somebody else in which case you should consider listening to them) and pursue your passions, not what somebody else tells you your passions should be.

If you're a girl and you don't wear makeup, or you're a guy and you haven't had sex or maybe you're an Oompah Loompah and you've never kissed a Baacaa Waaka and you're ridiculed for that...then go find a group of girls who promote natural beauty or volunteer for a chastity promoting organization.

Or if you're made to feel out of place for being a "techie" then join a group of students who really enjoys this stuff.

Don't give up your passions.


It's one of the biggest mistakes you can make and I guarantee, you will lose yourself.

[goodnews.inc]

Originally Posted by jhan523

Hmmm, what is the recommended amount of times?

When the Biohazard team arrives, or the Faculty of Health Sciences tries to use your drawers to produce new antibiotics...it's time to wash 'em.

[jhan523]

Originally Posted by goodnews.inc

That means doing what you love, while being considerate of other people.
To elaborate:
Practicing the Ooompah Loompah dance at 1 AM, even if you ARE an Oompah Loompah won't be appreciated.

It's going to be so hard balancing Oompah Loompah song practice and University at the same time...

When the Biohazard team arrives, or the Faculty of Health Sciences tries to use your drawers to produce new antibiotics...it's time to wash 'em.

Would I get paid? If so then it's time to throw away all the other underwear XD

[~*Sara*~]

To be honest.. I don't want to know either :S.. I'd rather NOT be traumatized forever

[goodnews.inc]

But on a serious, less little chocolate producing man note, it's very important to feel...comfortable.

I find that while some girls are wonderful and others are very sweet, in those large girl group hangouts where people start discussing things like makeup, boys and stuff...things get awkward very very fast.


I know we're in university but I think the high school mentality prevails for a while longer until we realise that fact completely.


Just because Bacca Wacca doesn't have a crush right now, ladies, that doesn't mean she's asexual. And if she is, that's her own business.


Unless she's a bacterium and decides to reproduce in front of you. Then I understand the need for gossip.

[goodnews.inc]

My Post Made No Sense.

So I Am Inserting Filler.

My name is John Appleseed. Welcome to your new Macbook Pro. I hope you had a wonderful time purchasing your new Apple Product. Please stay seated while we repo your car to pay your Apple Store bill.

[goodnews.inc]

Is there a buddy system where International Students and/or Exchange students can pair up with a person who'll show them around and stuff or just be there for their 3 AM questions?

If so, does one join in 2nd year?
If not, can't we form one?