If you guys have been following my blog, you know I’m an international student. I come from Peru and came to US to go to college. I’ll be a sophomore next school year and if you want to know more about me just read this or follow me on Instagram! I wanted to share my experience with you and let you guys know how is it like to be an international student.
Moving abroad means getting out of your comfort zone and it can be scary but exciting at the same time. It took me some time to get used to being away from home. And having studied abroad before moving abroad helped me a whole lot. So here is what it’s like to be an international student.
There are so many stereotypes and misconceptions
Those are two things I’ve always experienced while studying abroad. While I was in Germany some people actually asked me if I rode a lama to school… As ridiculous as it sounds some people actually believed we lived in the middle of nowhere and used lamas for transportation. And when people ask that type of things, you can whether tell them the truth or tell them that they’re right until they realize they are not. It is sometimes disappointing and funny at the same time.
In the US, people don’t usually think that we (Peruvians) ride lamas, but as long as you look Latina and speak Spanish, people think you crossed the Mexican border illegally…
Of course, not everyone thinks that way, but as an international student, there will always be some misconceptions and stereotypes you’ll have to deal with.
Sometimes people are surprised you speak English well
People tend to think international students have a difficulty speaking English. But while some students might struggle, the majority are fluent English speakers. Most international students learn English since they are like 5 years old and we take so many exams and test to prove we actually speak English proficiently. It is sometimes quite annoying to hear “Oh, your English is great”. Because sometimes people assume that just because you’re an international student, you barely speak English.
You don’t know where home is anymore
I go to school in Cincinnati, I spend the summers in Florida and some holidays in Kentucky but I was born in Peru and pretty much lived almost my entire live there. I honestly don’t know where home is anymore…
Google translate is your bff sometimes
Even though, my English is not bad at all, sometimes there are words I don’t understand and sometimes there are words I don’t know how to translate to English. So google translate is sometimes my best friend and a life savior.
Sometimes you get confused with both languages
Sometimes when you’re talking with someone in your native language and then someone talks to you in English, it can take a couple seconds or minutes to switch your brain from one language to another. I don’t know if it happens to completely everyone, but it happens to me all the time…
You make your American friends proof-read your essays
Shoutout to every friend, who has ever proof-read an essay, an application or something for me. It doesn’t matter how proficient you can be in English, sometimes you can make small mistakes you don’t notice. I always always ask my friends to proof read everything before I hand it in, just because I don’t want to lose points over small mistakes.
While studying abroad you defend your own culture. But when you are in your hometown you defend the culture of the country you’re studying at
As I said before, there’re some stereotypes about Peru and some people ask stupid questions, and as a Peruvian I can’t help but get defensive about it. But just as there’re stereotypes of my country, there are stereotypes of the country I study at. And just as I defend my country from every stereotype possible, when I hear stereotypes about the US, I get defensive about that too and explain they’re just stereotypes.
Some people won’t know where your home country is
It is always funny when I tell people where I’m from. Sometimes they know straight away where my home country is located and sometimes they look so confused until I tell them that Macchu Pichu is there and they are like “OMG, right, Lamas!”
You won’t be able to go home that often
Because flights are long and so expensive. It’s not like you can go home over the weekend.
No matter what you do, you’ll get homesick
Moving to another country can be challenging sometimes. It’s another culture, and you might miss somethings about your country and of course your family. No matter how hard you try, you’ll get homesick at some point.
The thing I miss the most about Peru is the FOOD! I’m honestly so jealous of Chinese and Mexican people. They can find their food literally everywhere. While finding Peruvian restaurants is so hard.
Also, it can be hard not to compare you country to where you’re at. I took me sometime to adapt to a new culture.
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