Every year, the number of international students in the United States rises as more and more students choose the U.S. as a place they want to broaden their experience and continue their education. In fact, the U.S. is now the most popular country for international students. International students are likely a source of fascination among American students but international students often have difficulty adjusting when they first arrive.  There are cultural differences, language issues, academic challenges and much more that these students face.

Tharina Malan, a South African student of multimedia and folk stories at SCC, shared some of her challenges so far.

”For me has the most challenging thing been the different ways of teaching and also it is the classroom culture that is most challenging for me,” Malan said.

Malan was referring to the new experience of gaining the ability to communicate with a diverse cultural group.

Melita Oktanawati, an SCC student of Business Management, is from Indonesia and is quickly learning English in order to communicate more effectively.

“Before coming to USA, I used to speak Indonesian language and I was comfortable with that but here I have house mates from Pakistan, India and South Africa and we have to speak English because that’s the only language I use to communicate with them and I communicate effectively with all the groups of diverse culture,” Oktanawati said.

So far, the experience for Neo Makgetla, an SCC student from Africa has helped her to respect different cultures because it is diverse, and according to Makgetta, here, people have different skin colors but there is no ill treatment toward each other.

“Everyone wants to know about our culture and they are amazed at the stories we tell, that makes me proud of my own culture,” Makgetta said. “I am also learning about different cultures but the love for humanity keeps us united.”

Qasim Khilji is from Pakistan and is missing his home country very much. He is a student of business management at SCC.  What Khliji is missing most about his home country is Pakistani food.

“I just started eating American food, it is good but when I compare it to Pakistani cuisine, then it is just tasteless,” Khliji said.

He is also missing food made by his mother.

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Tayyaba Siddiqui/Scottsdale Chronicle

Qasim Khilji is a business management student at SCC. (Tayyaba Siddiqui/Scottsdale Chronicle)

Khliji is very passionate about his field of study and conveyed his concerns and ambitions about his future business profession,

”I feel that many organizations in my home country are not progressive enough, they can’t give a world class corporate culture to their employees, so here in America I want to experience all aspects of making business successful and will give my community understanding of ‘basic’ language of business, clear business vision, clear go-to market strategies, corporate governance experience, business innovation, corporate social responsibilities, consumer respect and much more,” Khliji said.