What it's like to be an international student at KU
1. 9/21/2016 What it's like to be an international student at KU - The University Daily Kansan: News
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What it's like to be an
international student at KU
Posted: Tuesday, July 5, 2016 8:10 pm
Ryan Wright | @ryanwaynewright
Every year,
thousands of
students from all
over the world travel to the United States
to continue their education at the
University. Going to a new country for the
first time isn't the easiest thing in the world,
and international students have many
adjustments to make. But beyond
adjusting to the culture of Lawrence, many
students say they just want to make an
American friend.
According to Charles Olcese, the director
of International Student Services,
international students tend to rank making
an American friend very highly in their
incoming goals.
"That’s why they came to the U.S. They
could go to University in their own country
or in a similar country, but they came to
the U.S. because they wanted to have an
American experience. They wanted to get to know America," he said.
Kunal Karnik, a senior from Mumbai, said some international students go out of their
way to make American friends.
"I have some friends who don’t want to talk to other Indians because they feel they
are out of India now and they shouldn’t be hanging out with Indians," Karnik said.
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Kunal Karnik, an incoming senior. Karnik is from Mumbai, India.
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Posted on Jul 5, 2016
by Ryan Wright
2. 9/21/2016 What it's like to be an international student at KU - The University Daily Kansan: News
http://www.kansan.com/news/what-it-s-like-to-be-an-international-student-at/article_6b9cdcde-4316-11e6-af3c-e70e08d04f30.html 2/3
Karnik was 17 when he arrived in Lawrence, and with no family in town, he was
forced to put himself out there and make friends.
"My family wasn’t here, my entire support system was my friends. So I had to make a
lot of friends fast," Karnik said.
However, making an American friend is not a goal that's always attainable. Olcese
said he believes it's partly because domestic students aren't great hosts. He said he
doesn't think American students approach hosting as something important and should
take initiative.
"Part of being a good host is taking the initiative and making people feel comfortable,"
Olcese said. "They are probably more eager to want to be your friend than you are in
reaching out, because that’s really valuable experience for them."
Because of these barriers, international students may choose to spend their free time
with other international students from the same or a similar country.
"International students are more quiet, they just stay in their group of friends that are
from the same country. I feel like it’s easier for us to make friends like that," Yupaporn
Kawinpakorn, a 2016 graduate, said. Kawinpakorn is from Samut Prakan, Thailand
and is a former member of the University's women's golf team.
Kawinpakorn said she struggled with English when she arrived, which made it harder
for her to make friends and do her classwork.
"I remember when I first got here my English wasn’t that great and I couldn’t catch
what they [professors] said, exactly," Kawinpakorn said.
After she got into the groove of the semester and her English improved, Kawinpakorn
said she became confident and began to make friends.
"It’s hard at first because I was shy to speak and I didn’t have a lot of friends. Now I’m
good, I have a lot of friends now," she said.
However, making friends isn't the only challenge international students face when they
arrive on campus. As one can expect, it takes time for many students to get adjusted
to Lawrence. According to Olcese, it's an easier adjustment during the fall semester
than it is for students who start in the summer.
"I always feel sorry for international students who start in the summer term because
it’s so vastly different than they expected. It's very different from what they get when
fall starts," Olcese said.
This is similar to what Karnik experienced when he first arrived in Lawrence. He
wanted to arrive in Lawrence a couple weeks before school started so he could adjust
to the city. Before getting to Lawrence, he had a layover in Chicago at the O'Hare
International Airport and the first thing he saw in America was an overhead view of
Chicago.
He arrived in Lawrence in the middle of the day and no one was around. This is not
what Karnik expected, being from such a densely populated city like Mumbai.
"Being from Mumbai, you look in one direction you see at least a hundred people,"
Karnik said. "It just felt like a ghost town. Frankly, I was scared. I was like 'Where am
I? This does not feel like Chicago.'"
Money can also be an issue for international students. They pay nonresident fees,
which are typically about three or more times the resident fee. And they often don’t
have the same access to financial aid options because only citizens can get loans or
grants from the U.S. government. Unless students have a program from their home
country, they often times pay full rate, according to Olcese.
![9/21/2016 What it's like to be an international student at KU - The University Daily Kansan: News
http://www.kansan.com/news/what-it-s-like-to-be-an-international-student-at/article_6b9cdcde-4316-11e6-af3c-e70e08d04f30.html 2/3
Karnik was 17 when he arrived in Lawrence, and with no family in town, he was
forced to put himself out there and make friends.
"My family wasn’t here, my entire support system was my friends. So I had to make a
lot of friends fast," Karnik said.
However, making an American friend is not a goal that's always attainable. Olcese
said he believes it's partly because domestic students aren't great hosts. He said he
doesn't think American students approach hosting as something important and should
take initiative.
"Part of being a good host is taking the initiative and making people feel comfortable,"
Olcese said. "They are probably more eager to want to be your friend than you are in
reaching out, because that’s really valuable experience for them."
Because of these barriers, international students may choose to spend their free time
with other international students from the same or a similar country.
"International students are more quiet, they just stay in their group of friends that are
from the same country. I feel like it’s easier for us to make friends like that," Yupaporn
Kawinpakorn, a 2016 graduate, said. Kawinpakorn is from Samut Prakan, Thailand
and is a former member of the University's women's golf team.
Kawinpakorn said she struggled with English when she arrived, which made it harder
for her to make friends and do her classwork.
"I remember when I first got here my English wasn’t that great and I couldn’t catch
what they [professors] said, exactly," Kawinpakorn said.
After she got into the groove of the semester and her English improved, Kawinpakorn
said she became confident and began to make friends.
"It’s hard at first because I was shy to speak and I didn’t have a lot of friends. Now I’m
good, I have a lot of friends now," she said.
However, making friends isn't the only challenge international students face when they
arrive on campus. As one can expect, it takes time for many students to get adjusted
to Lawrence. According to Olcese, it's an easier adjustment during the fall semester
than it is for students who start in the summer.
"I always feel sorry for international students who start in the summer term because
it’s so vastly different than they expected. It's very different from what they get when
fall starts," Olcese said.
This is similar to what Karnik experienced when he first arrived in Lawrence. He
wanted to arrive in Lawrence a couple weeks before school started so he could adjust
to the city. Before getting to Lawrence, he had a layover in Chicago at the O'Hare
International Airport and the first thing he saw in America was an overhead view of
Chicago.
He arrived in Lawrence in the middle of the day and no one was around. This is not
what Karnik expected, being from such a densely populated city like Mumbai.
"Being from Mumbai, you look in one direction you see at least a hundred people,"
Karnik said. "It just felt like a ghost town. Frankly, I was scared. I was like 'Where am
I? This does not feel like Chicago.'"
Money can also be an issue for international students. They pay nonresident fees,
which are typically about three or more times the resident fee. And they often don’t
have the same access to financial aid options because only citizens can get loans or
grants from the U.S. government. Unless students have a program from their home
country, they often times pay full rate, according to Olcese.](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)