WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14. 2011
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE 3
INTERNATIONAL FROM PAGE 1
Mirenkenko was an international student orientation leader and is president of the Students for Green Chemistry and Engineering group, which works to bring in lecturers and plan plant tours.
"I don't think I got any culture shock or homesickness," Ma said. "It was really, really interesting for me and I met so many people and made friends."
"I made really good friends with my RA and we still keep in touch," Ma said. "Every day I was so busy, there was so much to do that was so interesting that I really liked it."
Ma lived in McCollum Hall her freshman year and made friends with the students on her floor.
"This week or next week we're going to give a presentation to freshman about green chemistry," Minenko said. "We really try and promote this field."
When choosing a college, Ma said she wanted to go to another country where they spoke English so she could practice it.
For Maggie Ma, a junior from Beijing, life in America is the perfect fit.
"Someone just told me 'Why don't you come to America?'" she said.
Ma has now found ways to be involved on campus. She participates in KU DanceSport and moved into Sellards Scholarship Hall last year. She also likes to attend the events hosted by Student Union Activities.
Ma said after her time at Kansas is finished, she will remember the basketball games, Big Jay and Baby Jay, and many other traditions.
"I really love the on campus activities that KU has because it gives me opportunities to make new friends." Ma said.
"It makes me feel like, 'Oh I'm in a really great school.' It makes me really proud," Ma said.
Edited by Jason Bennett
Chinese student settles in at Kansas
CAMPUS
MARSHALL SCHMIDT mschmidt@kansan.com
While many incoming students find themselves away from home for the first time at the University of Kansas, one student traveled half-way around the world to go to school. Qi Zheng, a 22-year-old graduate student, came all the way from Dalian, China, located in the northeast part of the country, to pursue a Ph.D in Biomedical Engineering.
When asked why she decided to study in the United States, Zheng said, "I wanted to try a different kind of life."
Although Zheng spent a month researching at University of California-Davis in the summer of 2010, this is her first time living outside her home country for an extended period of time.
Zheng arrived in Kansas Aug. 7.
"During the first week, I didn't think much about the difficulties," said Zheng. "I was too excited."
Her first day of classes was a mix of surprises and frustrations.
"I did not find any other students who were Chinese," Zheng said. Besides her roommate, Zheng still has not found any other Chinese students on campus. However, she is part of a growing trend of Chinese students pursuing degree programs in the States. According to the Institute of International Education, 130,000 Chinese students studied at American universities during the 2009-2010 school year, an increase of 30 percent from the year before. This makes up a large chunk of the nearly 700,000 foreign students studying in the U.S.
Zheng noticed significant differences between American and Chinese cultures.
"People tend to be more friendly," said Zheng. "People ask 'how are you?' even though they might not know you."
She also noticed how students thank bus drivers and offer free rides, two things that would never happen in China.
With the new culture, adjusting to the language and communication has been challenging. Contributing to in-class discussions are more difficult for foreign students than for native speakers.
"I will think about an idea in Chinese and then translate it into English," Zheng said. "My reaction is not as quick as other students."
This also translates to talking on phones.
"It's most difficult to make phone calls," Zheng said. "During face to face conversations, you can see facial expressions and hand gestures that help."
In spite of this, Zheng feels as
though she is getting used to her new life in Kansas.
"I'm starting to get used to everything, and understand what the professors and students are talking about," Zheng said.
This helps in her work as a teaching assistant for an upper level chemical engineering class.
"I'm starting to be able to help students in class," Zheng said. "I feel a sense of achievement."
Zheng has the opportunity to speak Chinese only at night when she sees her roommate, Xiaoemong Su. Zheng met Su last spring via QQ. QQ is a Chinese instant messenger service that connects Chinese users to people with similar interests. A group designed for Chinese students looking to attend the University of Kansas allowed the two to connect.
Su is a first year Ph.D student majoring in civil engineering. She
also finds life to be quite different in the United States.
"In China, we always have classmates and things to do together, but in the U.S., I'm a lot more independent," Su said.
The two roommates had originally thought they could cook together, but soon found it more difficult than they had thought.
"We just have too different of diets." Su said.
Su is adjusting to her new life. Having a fellow Chinese roommate makes the process easier.
Both students look forward to their future at the University of Kansas.
"Trying to make new friends is just the beginning." Zheng said. "As you meet more people, you get more help and life will be easier."
Edited by C.J. Matson