Parties, dessert and Gossip Girl

Quite a few students from Australia, Bulgaria, China, Holland, India, Japan, Trinidad and Tobago,and other countries have decided to make Furman their home. These students have come from diverse backgrounds to a country that is culturally and socially different from their own. How do they manage? What are the adjustments that they make? These are questions that come to most of our minds when thinking about international students
The one thing that Tabitha Mendez, a freshman from Trinidad and Tobago, finds curious is that Furman's dining hall serves dessert at every meal.
"For us dessert is like a treat on Sundays or birthdays or special occasions," said Mendez.
The friendly nature of the average Furman student was noted by some exchange students. Jildou Bakker, an exchange student from The Netherlands feels that the people here are very polite,
"Almost too polite," as she puts it.
Kaoru Ando, an exchange student from Japan agrees,
"People here are really friendly, in Japan you never talk to a student you don't know. But here everyone is nice to you even if you don't know them" said Kaoru.
That is one reason, according to these students, that they did not undergo a severe culture shock.
"People try to include me, and they want to know about me and my background. They find it fascinating that I come from an island!" said Tabitha Mendez.
Exchange students have also noted the difference in speech patterns between typical Americans and themselves.
"I used to watch Gossip Girl at home, and when I came here I realized that American girls actually talk like that! I did not think that they would talk that way in real life!" said Anne Marie, an exchange student from the Netherlands. Hong Liu, a freshman from China feels the same way, "People are really loud here compared to China. Their voice fluctuations are fascinating!"
The number of parties that occur on campus were yet another cultural difference. "And so many of them," said Hong Liu. "We never ever had parties in our college in Japan, and even if there is some occasion, we drink tea or something," said Kaoru.
The only major problem the students have faced till now is language.
"People here speak too fast in English, and I just can't understand them," said Hong Liu.
For Tabitha Mendez it is the accent, "They have a completely different accent and it takes a while for me to comprehend what they've just said."
Food for them is another aspect of American life that will take some adjusting to. "We mostly eat rice and noodles in Japan but here they hardly, if ever, have them," said Kaoru Ando.
The jokes that are told by the people here are also a problem for him. "I just can't understand their jokes, just cannot." said Ando.
Of course, there are aspects of American culture that these students would like to change. One aspect of her country that Jildou Bakker would like to see changed is that education be made more affordable.
"It's just too expensive for everyone," said Bakker.
Anne Marie on the other hand thinks that the age-limit for drinking should be reduced, "The age limit should be 18 or 16 or something!"
Hong Liu, obviously, wants at least one meal a day to have rice and noodles.
So, why did they choose Furman?
"My father is a college professor, and he told me a lot about it," said Hong Liu.
Kaoru Ando liked the fact that Furman had a small number of students,
"In Japan there is like a sea of faces; there are so many students in one class. I wanted to go to a college that had a limited number of students. Furman also offers a broad choice of subjects," said Ando. Anne Marie chose Furman because it was in the south;
"I wanted to see the South, as I think it is special and has a lot of culture. I also wanted to go to a private school and I feel Furman will provide me with a quality education."
The personal attention and admission factors are some of the many reasons that Tabitha Mendez chose Furman.
"The people here are very personal. They try to get to know you. The international office has been very helpful in making me feel comfortable. Furman also has a beautiful campus," said Mendez.