A couple
days ago I saw a list of things that international students studying in America
feel. And I totally agree with all of them so here they are, but I have added
some of my own too. So here is 40 things that International students studying
in the USA have to contend with:
1) Constantly checking the exchange rate
to see how better off you are.
2) Trying to work out the political
correctness line.
3) Discovering that there are topics
which you just should NOT bring up in groups you don’t know.
4) Finding out that shops always seem to
have sales, so don’t go for every single one you see.
5) Watching your diet move away from
healthy vegetables and balanced diet to carbohydrate heavy.
6) Waiting for what feels like years for
a package to come in from home (sometimes it is years when the post gets lost…)
7) Finding out big family news last
because you have to wait until the next “Skype opportunity”.
8) Wondering why they even bother having
coins when nobody even uses them!!
9) Having probably at least one sport
from home that they don’t play and having to constantly try to explain it in
terms of Basketball, American Football or Football.
10) Dealing with everyone constantly
saying, “Say (whatever new word they’re trying for the day)” and you have to
repeat to everyone for a half hour.
11) When other students talk about school
in Grades, trying to quickly work out what year that meant you were in in
school.
12) Being considered rich and posh, even
if the only reason you can be there is through a stupid amount of scholarships
(thankful of them as you are).
13) Discovering the size of paper is
different and trying to keep changing the dimensions on your laptop so it
prints correctly.
14) Always being at least a
little bit jet-lagged for the first week of classes.
15)
Drinking legally* at home for
years, but moving to the U.S. and suddenly being underage.
16)
Finding a friend with whom to go
home for Thanksgiving or being literally alone on campus, while you scroll
through everyone’s family-and-food Instagrams.
17)
Converting everything from American
dollars to your home currency, and feeling abysmally poor or dangerously rich,
depending on where you’re from.
18)
Spelling and pronouncing random
words differently than Americans do and dealing with idiots who insist that
your way isn’t just different, it’s wrong.
19)
Figuring out which ID to carry with
you when you go out.
20)
Initially being overwhelmed and
shocked by the humongous food-portion sizes And then, in a few months, being
completely able to finish an entire portion AND order dessert.
21)
Having random gaps in your pop
culture knowledge, and resorting to the smile-and-nod tactic to pretend you
know what’s being talked about.
22)
Going days without talking to your
parents because when they’re up and free to call, you’re not.
23)
The shock of realizing that your
version of America was based on TV stereotypes.
24)
When you accidentally use slang
from your home country and everyone looks at you like you’re nuts.
25)
Scouring the entire continental
United States for someone who will cook your native cuisine as well as your
mom. And eventually missing home food so much that you find ways to slip it
through customs.
26)
Speaking of which: Having a constant
fear that every tiny infraction will result in you being deported.
27)
Paperwork. So much damn paperwork.
28)
And maniacally scrambling to the
international students’ office to get all of it signed in time.
29)
The awkward resentment you feel
when people try to tell you they know how you feel.
30)
Navigating the weirdness of your
slowly evolving accent… Especially when your mom calls.
31)
All the hours you’ve wasted
standing nervously in airport immigration and security lines.
32)
The dread and fear you associate
with the letters O, P, and T.
33)
And the fact that so many potential
employers seem allergic to the words “visa” and “sponsorship.”
34)
The brief and horrifying moment
when you seriously consider marrying someone for a green card.
35)
Figuring out what the holidays mean
and how you should be responding to them.
36)
Your constantly buzzing phone, thanks
to WhatsApp, BBM, and Viber And the fact that your friends across the world are
awake when you’re trying to sleep.
37)
Telling people where you’re from
and then having to deal with their questions and misconceptions.
38)
Constantly worrying about
reinforcing stereotypes, and feeling a responsibility to break them.
39)
Relatedly: The horror of realizing
you’re someone’s Token Foreign Friend.
40)
The fear that at the end of this
crazy, beautiful ride, you’ll have to pack up and leave abandoning this golden
land of freedom and opportunity for a future that is completely uncertain.
Hope you enjoyed them all, and a quick thank
you to Suzy for bringing them to my attention!
