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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 5, 1996)
Page tember 5,1! Aggielife Thursday Page 5 September 5, 1996 g Weekly seminars help international .students adjust to rigors of A&M life :hild. His mplicity of f the 60’s aw edges, utes his f the firs! for ust before it big.” Bennett anager, Dik eatre ndary musi d Snider per >ntract vs# predates perspective on our s my paycli ite a whole :ch : peop jrmant etched forar ilked theirpii Die to thepe; they are,' ending belr ialogue: v/ reporter: 'la goes." Host tie r: “I thought vould never s' Deen sitting or 0 Macarena are as stales: om in riond's wallet -An awed 1 Music Hall .4* serosmith’s 31; walked by.iS i, huh? Whatip 'hen MTV arm / arrives - i up the wort: own Manhatte >. Side nd Radio icted more Ite s beforehanil icades and ers, snarling! ven perfor ned more g ird the sho\s awards. Me'' oo Fighters s n asked II ight they’d us “Hootie" igged and ss scted to lose nd isn't this ’: “When you talk to international students, you get a different s ; This is the fourth story in a series about support services available on campus. The series will run through the rest of the week and will highlight a different support service every day. lives in America, and on what's valuable in life. // - Dr. Wade Birch Director of the Student Counseling Service new artist ho sn’t like aw gh she alio ;s pressure n’t change the By Brent Troyan The Battalion tudying abroad can be the adventure of a lifetime, but it can also bring loneliness, culture shock and academic failure. An organization on campus is helping international and domestic students prepare for and cope with the psychological problems stu dents often face when adjusting to another cul ture. The International Students College Success Group offers free weekly seminars throughout the year, show ing students how to adjust to living in a differ ent culture and succeed in col lege. Dr. Gisela Lin, a psychologist and counselor for the Success Group, sees a duel focus in the pro gram. “The main goal is to help students be suc cessful, academically [while studying in a for eign country],” Lin said, “but it’s also about the differences in culture.” The Success Group brings speakers and stu dents together to discuss fundamental college survival topics and learning time manage ment, goal setting and study skills. Lin said the first sessions target adjustments necessary to bridge cultural gaps, deal with conflicting cul tural values, and learn cross-cultural commu nication skills, including non-verbal commu nication in different societies. These adjustment sessions are helpful to international students and domestic students who plan to study abroad or enter internation al business. “We prepare them for what’s coming,” Lin said. The first four to six weeks abroad are called the “Honeymoon Stage,” a state of excitement and wonder. Then culture shock begins to set in with feelings of loneliness, depression and homesickness. Toni Fudge, a Success Group co-leader, said the program provides some emotional support, but it focuses on social and academic support. “It’s a psycho-educational group,” she said. Dr. Wade Birch, director of the Student Counseling Services, said he started the International Students College Success group eight years ago as an unstructured group for new international students. Students brought up issues they wanted to discuss. “Dr. Lin has shifted the group to be more topical,” he said. “We’re still doing the same thing, but we’re doing it in a different way.” Now, the session topics are set in advance, and the sessions often begin with a video on the discussion subject. Birch said the set agen da relieves the pressure on a student to discuss ideas, and Lin believes the videos make open discussion easier. “The videos give students a reference point [for discussion],” she said. Birch said the Success Group, unlike International Camp or the International Student Orientation, has the potential to be a place for on-going discussions. Lin said building trust takes time, but the students gain the oppor tunity to learn about new cul tures and edu cate others about the norms and customs of their home country. Lin has had her own experience with telling others about her culture and adjusting to America’s culture. She studied at Tamkang University in Taiwan before moving to the United States for graduate study at Amherst College in Massachusetts. Fudge said she believes the group is a ben efit to domestic students. She said she encourages their attendance at the Wednesday evening sessions in the Learning Resources Department on' the sixth floor of the Sterling C. Evans Library. The group main tains an open-door policy to all students regardless of their cultures. Lin said she would like to offer more discus sion sessions in the future, ones for new international students and ones for open dis cussion of cultural differences. The Success Group offers a confidential setting for students to ask questions about American cul ture and express concerns about discrimination. Lin, who has been in charge of the program for the past four years, said her experiences with the Success Group’s students have been rewarding. “This is something I really love to do,” Lin said. “Seeing them make it through tough times, that is the reward for me.” Fudge said she looks forward to this year as an opportunity to learn about herself. “The group is not just about integrating stu dents into the academic community,” she said. “It’s about gaining an understanding about the environment and community we’re in.” Birch said many domestic students are missing an opportunity to learn about them selves and their culture. The Road To The College Basketball Finals Is Paved With Sweat And Misery. So We'll Fly You There Instead Morissett 1 auts wearing! > understand >entel u! nancy. Atmyliis Hdn’tseeimmediasl fference. Ihaventf 1 fcrent types ofd#' Zeroise. I havegoi*’ i* has shown me ^ n sign me up fortf '!M r Specials 1979 'lasses. 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