International student panelists offer advice, experiences on challenges of learning abroad

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Tolga Kaya said the hardest part about moving to the U.S. was getting used to American food.

After a few laughs from the audience, the School of Engineering and Technology instructor and Turkey native elaborated on how food reminds international students and faculty of home.

Kaya was a speaker at “Challenges of Being an International Student,” a panel discussion held Friday in the Bovee University Center Auditorium. He said different foods can take away that “close to home” feeling.

“I don’t eat pork,” Kaya said. “It’s not my religion. I just don’t eat it.”

About 30 domestic and international students attended to discuss the positives and negatives of studying in the U.S.

The discussion was led by four panelists who brought stories about their transition to a new lifestyle in the U.S. They started by sharing their experiences coming to the country and each gave personal advice to international students.

The event was hosted by the Engineering Department, African Student Association, Office of International Affairs and the Student Government Association’s Diversity Committee.

Kaya’s advice to international students was to maintain their own beliefs carried from their home countries, but to not isolate themselves from the new people around them.

Graduate student Angel Erpula spoke about similar challenges faced by international students in the U.S.

Erpula, who is from India, said she learned “a lot of the challenges were the same among people and a lot of situations fall into the same category.”

Veronica Barone, a physics assistant professor from Argentina, told students “one of the most stressful parts of the transition is maintaining your immigration status.”

She said it is important because immigrating to the U.S. is difficult these days. Barone related her experience witnessing the termination of one of her former colleagues for not renewing his papers.

One student in attendance asked the panelists to describe their experiences with discrimination after coming to the U.S.

Barone and her colleagues said they have not faced any real kind of discrimination.

They were surprised at how open Americans were to different people, she said.

Nepal senior Pratik Chhetri said he was initially drawn to the event because he too is an international student.

“I wanted to listen to what people had to say about their experiences,” he said.