International Students at College

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Foreign nationals who come to the United States with temporary student visas face the same adjustment conflicts as all other ­ college ­ students regarding developmental, academic, and parental pressures. They may also experience many of the same difficulties faced by immigrants and minorities such as racial discrimination and language problems. If these factors aren't enough to wear them down, they also must deal with unique problems that can additionally contribute to loneliness, anxiety, confusion, and depression.

Although most international students arrive in the United States feeling euphoric at the prospect of living and learning in a new country, it often doesn't take long for culture fatigue to set in. Even for those who are reasonably fluent in English (if it is their second language), it can be a daily struggle to think, speak, read, and write in a second language and to decipher the many American idioms, expressions, and euphemisms that they did not learn in their English-language classes back home.

At the same time, these students are facing the challenge of getting through the day, intent on thinking about every move: Which bathroom faucet gives hot water and which cold water? (Americans always put the hot faucet on the left.) How do I choose from two dozen different laundry detergents, and how do I turn on this washing machine? Conscious living gets very tiring and stressful over time and eventually may make these young adults feel as if they just can't cope.

Learning Styles

The differing classroom culture is also a major issue for international students. This is most evident in the relationship between students and faculty. In many foreign countries, the professor is the authority. Students are not allowed to challenge, question, or disagree with the instructor; they cannot offer their own opinions, and they do not discuss issues. In these countries (particularly in Eastern Asian countries), class participation is unheard of; students are often seen as sponges: they are expected to absorb information and squeeze it back.

But in the United States, students learn from a very early age that expressing their opinions is valued and is often a significant part of their grade. In Harvard Business School, for example, 50 percent
of the grade is based on class participation. This can be a devastating adjustment for students who are not accustomed to speaking out in class and is particularly difficult if English is not their first language and they are worried about a strong accent or misuse of words. This difference in learning styles can be very intimidating.

Informality in the classroom, which American students find relaxing, is another daily occurrence that causes stress for many international students. These students have never been in a learning environment where the teacher sits around casually with the students, where students drink soda and coffee in class and walk in late or leave early. They have been raised to sit in straight rows and take notes from formal lectures. Also, they are sometimes confused by the American concept of group work in which students work together toward a common mutual goal. Often they do not understand where the line is between legitimate sharing and plagiarism. The concept of plagiarism, which is heavily stressed in American secondary schools, may not be taught at all in the educational systems of other countries.