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Coping
with the Stress
of studying away from home
Studying abroad
is likely to lead to: Homesickness, Culture shock and
The “Martian
effect”
 The
first signs of starting to settle down in a foreign country
are not that you start to feel comfortable with the place
but that you start to hate it. Most students who go abroad
to study experience this breaking-in process which makes
them think why on earth they left home in the first place….
Students need not fear and need not change their plans of
going outside their own country to study. I promise that
the problem is not insurmountable and in fact it can be
turned into a first class challenge.
Upon
arriving in a foreign country most international students
are forced to deal with the challenge of “how can I
cope with homesickness”? Though there is no magic way
of making the problem go away there ways of making the problem
more palatable.
- For a start,
talk to other people about your place, tell them about
the similarities and differences between your country
and theirs.
- Talk to your
international student advisors about your problems, they
know what you are going through, as they probably have
been through these problems themselves. Every worthwhile
college has advisors who are more than willing to listen
to the problems of foreign students. Good advisors are
more than happy to chat with new students and to see how
they can help them get over their problems.
- I strongly
advise homesick students to take part in all College programs
and to get involved in college life as quickly as possible.
Most colleges have programmes designed to help international
students bring their culture to the college. For example,
international students bring food from different counties
helping to make a cultural experience for all, as each
brings a bit of his or her own country to the feast.
- Meeting
other internal students is a good way of dealing with
the problem and getting over your homesickness.
The
second problem that most international students go through
is culture shock, as at first everything in the new country
seems unusual and pretty soon the new place becomes overwhelming.
Most students are not amused when they try to buy something
and the shopkeeper does not understand their accent. Nor is
it amusing when the student gets lost every time he or she
leaves his house just because the new neighbourhood seems
strange.
- Soon, international
students realise that they live in a different country and
that they HAVE to learn new ways of coping. It is therefore
imperative to learn quickly how the system works. Learning
how the system works does not necessarily mean that the
student fits in with the locals. All it means is that the
student no longer stands out clearly as a foreigner.
- Getting to know
the locals is a great help as they are part of the system
and can provide the student with valuable tips on how to
deal with a variety of issues.
- Getting to know
the (new) town very well helps students get around easily
and makes them feel more at home. The good thing is that
eventually, most students view the town as their new home.
The third problem
foreign students are forced to cope with is locals treating
them as Martians. A Greek in Gambier, Ohio certainly look
as a Grecian.
- The student
is advised not to take personally what may appear to be
ridiculous questions. People often ask ‘funny’
questions out of ignorance. “Do you have cars in your
country” in no way is intended to insult the student.
It only means that the local has never travelled abroad.
- Try telling
people about your country and explaining to them how life
is back home. If you see that they are not interested in
what you are saying just joke and discretely let them know
that their impression of your country is not exactly right.
In closing, I advise
the international student not to be intimidated and to remember
that at the end all works out well. In fact, on completion
of their studies most international students are sad to leave
their new country and when they arrive in their home country
“homesickness” begins to work in reverse. Oh how
I wish I were back in my Alma Matter!
Written by:
Professor Aris Petasis,
the Philips College, Nicosia, CYPRUS |
