A New Home in the Hub

Three years ago, Nigar Chalabi Zada, now a College of Arts and Sciences junior, was lost. Standing in front of Myles Standish Hall, which is on Beacon Street, Zada pulled out her Boston University map. She was trying to find Commonwealth Avenue, but she was not even sure if she was reading the map correctly. The closest the Azerbaijan native had come to the BU campus before that August day had been looking at pictures on the university's website. Not only did Zada have to deal with normal freshman adjustments - making new friends, learning to ride the T, figuring out how to balance a social life with classes - Zada had the added burden of adapting to life in a new country.

The CAS junior is just one of many international students at BU. Of the 16,673 undergraduates, 1,059 hail from countries outside the United States. This 2012 class is comprised of more international students than any other freshman class in the university's history - it saw a 39 percent increase in international students compared to the 2011 group. They apply with the same requirements of other students with the exception of needing a VISA.

In general, more international students have been leaving their home countries to study in the United States. South Korea, India and China - countries with some of the fastest growing economies in the world market - are sending 185 of the expected 444 international freshman. Even Canada came in a distant fourth, sending 29 students to BU this year.

"They're figuring out how to get from A to B," said Jeanne Kelley of the International Students and Scholars office. "And they're figuring out how to do it in English."

Many students know from a young age that they will be studying in either the United States or the United Kingdom. Di Yang, a CAS freshman, started studying higher level English in 10th grade so that he'd be prepared for college in the United States. Similarly, Akilesh Chitlangia, a junior in CAS, knew from the time that he was in grade school that he would be going abroad.

But that still does not answer why so many students are coming to BU in particular. One of the reasons for the university's abundance of international students could be its reputation abroad. President Robert Brown has prioritized attracting students from overseas since coming into office in 2005. This year, he has seen a tremendous increase as his efforts pay off, especially in the numbers. Enrollment of international students jumped dramatically from 7 to 10 percent this year. He said international students are looking to BU as the golden standard for higher education. In his experience, BU's reputation is more well known abroad than it is known nationally.

When foreigners think of top-tier American universities, BU is one of the first to come to mind

"Quality of U.S. education is being perceived better," Brown said.

And it seems like Brown's initiative is helping to improve the school's international reputation. It helps that BU has international campuses in major hubs such as London and Sydney, Australia.

"[BU] is a very famous university, especially in China," Yang said.

Kelley, of the ISSO, said many international students have heard about BU through friends or family members who have attended BU.

"They know people who have studied here and have had a good experience here," Kelley said. "Word of mouth is important."

Competition for college acceptances also played a part in students making the journey to the United States. Chitlangia explained it is much more difficult to be accepted to college in India, but he still wanted to remain in an urban environment. He had heard that Boston was a desirable city on the East coast. More and more students are coming to BU from Calcutta. Last year there were three and this year there were four or five, he said.

"Only the top 1 percent get into really good schools in India. It's a more practical education here," he said.

The competition for admittance to top universities in China was a factor that led Yang to attend BU.

The city itself, coupled with BU's solid academics, may also be contributing to the number of international students. Shiney James, the director of orientation who has worked at orientation for more than a decade, explained why so many international students are drawn to the Boston area. This summer, she directed the largest international orientation ever held at BU. "Students are looking for that global appeal," James said. "In coming to the Boston area you get American culture, but you also get that international flare, as well."

Many international students, including Zada and Cho, commented on what they thought was a "European feel" in Boston, especially in the architecture. The paved, colonial-era cow-paths and lowrise residential areas that characterize the city are reminiscent to Europe.The houses on Baystate Road seemed familiar to Cho because of the similarities to European architecture.

"It seems like a European city, but at the same time it has American aspects to it," Zada said. "You see many green trees and nature is beautiful."

In comparison with other cities around the globe, Boston can seem relatively small. Yang also noticed the very "clean" feel to the city and the fact that it is not very densely populated by his standards. Coming from Beijing, Yang was surprised at how empty the Boston streets seem, especially after his experience this summer surviving the flood of spectators at the Olympics. With a transition from a city the size of Calcutta, India, to that of Boston, Chitlangia noticed the difference.

While Boston's population is just under 600,000, Calcutta's population is more than 15 million, according to the 2007 census.

Deciding to study at BU is only the beginning for international students. Once they decide to attend, they have to cope with a world of adjustments. Most international students come to the city with a decent grip on the language. Zada said that once she grew accustomed to English, it was strange to hear anyone speak it without the Boston accent. However, others still struggle with the advanced English used in college courses.

Yang says the hardest part about adjusting to life in the United States hasn't been the culture, but the language. After studying English for nine years, he still finds the language challenging and repels compliments on his grasp on the language, admitting that he's "not that good yet."

Though he speaks perfect English and been mentally preparing himself to go abroad since the sixth grade, CAS junior Akhilesh Chitlangia found that his many years of studying formal English in Calcutta did little to prepare him for the slang and colloquialisms of American English. He received a crash course in slang freshman year while playing with friends at BU golf club.

"Out on the golf course they said that this kid's game was really nasty, so I thought that meant that he was really bad," Chitlangia said laughing. "It turned out to be that nasty meant that he was a good player."

American culture, too, can be difficult to get used to. The drinking age especially shocked many international students. Hailing from countries with lower legal drinking ages are bemused by the hype that surrounds drinking at BU. Chitlangia said he noticed students actually getting exciting about the prospect of breaking the law against under-age drinking.

"The way people get excited and hyped up about drinking and breaking the law-that's kind of different from back home," said Chitlangia. Shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head he said, "There, it's just kind of normal."

Namhee Cho, a freshman from South Korea who spent high school in a Vienna boarding school, was accustomed to drinking from the legal age of 16. A strange cultural difference Cho found was BU administration's emphasis on a no-drinking policy. She was unaccustomed to the stern attitudes toward consuming alcohol.

"When I was in orientation, they told us what happens when you drink alcohol," Cho said with a smile. "It was kind of weird for me."

Julianna Fernandez, a sophomore in CAS, also noticed differences in the party scene between her home of Bogotá, Colombia and Boston University. Specifically, the lengths students take to be able to drink are different in the states.

"You just go to a bar and have some cocktails, like normal," Fernandez said."Not go to a basement crowded with people."

Fernandez also found Americans could be callous in a way that she could not comprehend. She appeared somewhat uneasy as she recounted an event that she saw unfold while riding the T.

"This blind man came up, and the T was packed," Fernandez said. "And he was asking for someone to get up and let him sit. No one, no one let him sit."

Others found Americans to be friendlier than what they were used to at home. Cho was shocked when strangers started up conversations in the elevators on campus.

"That never happened to me in Austria," she said. She only laughed in response when asked about that ever happening in South Korea."In Korea that would never happen to me."

"Here you talk to everyone like they're your friends," she said, "it's pretty cool." In comparing American personalities with people from her home country, she said students are much friendlier in the United States.

In general, most students find that adjusting to life at BU is not terribly difficult. A few phone calls home suffice to combat home sickness and most have at least a few friends with whom they can speak their native tongue. Some even find the option to stay on campus more appealing than venturing back abroad.

Yang said at first that he wanted to take advantage of BU's study abroad program, but now he wants to stay at BU for all four years of college instead of leaving the country.In adding in their own particular flavor to the mix, international students have let American college culture rub off on them, too.

It's been two years since Zada stood in front of her dorm with a map that she had no idea how to use; now she sits in the George Sherman Union speaking easily about her experiences as an international student and president of the International Students Consortium - inserting "like" into her speech as naturally as any native-born English speaker. Zada has found her niche in the BU community as well, and it's easy to see that she feels just as comfortable here as anyone else.