When Inhyup Hwang first arrived at Ball State University, the freshman advertising major studying abroad from Korea said it was difficult for him to adjust, and he felt homesick for a while.
The thing that helped him feel more comfortable was getting to know other international students who were going through the experience of being new to this country.
While he found comfort in being able to relate to people that were similar to him, he felt like something was missing, he said.
"Although we may hang out with many Korean friends, we do want to make more American friends," Hwaany** said.
Hwany said meeting more American students would be a great experience and would also help him continue to learn the language and culture. He said he learned some American culture before coming to Ball State, but learning about it is not exactly the same as experiencing it. He said it is still hard for him to get used to a culture that is so different from his own.
Ball State has approximately 550 international students who represent more than 85 countries. When most of the international students arrive on campus, they are housed with other international students in Shively Hall in LaFollette Complex.
Due to the rising numbers this year, Mysch and Hurst halls in LaFollette are now used to house international students. Many are grouped in these halls that remain open year-round because it is easier for students who aren't able to go home during breaks, Shively Residence Hall Director Char Maris said.
"It's probably pros and cons, especially when they first get here, because having students together, there's someone there usually from their country or someone they can relate to, which helps with the homesickness," Maris said.
But many international students and Ball State students feel they don't get the chance to build relationships with one another.
Although she has only been in America for about 25 days, Chen Yan, a freshman from China who lives in Shively, said she chose to come to America to study so she could meet people who were different from her Chinese culture.
"To be honest, I want to make friends with American students," she said.
American students at Ball State have also expressed an interest in interacting more with the international students.
"I think they should be around more American students because they came to our country to learn about our country," freshman journalism and fashion major Ellie Howard said.
The university has an informal learning community to help international students adjust to life in a new country, which consists of a weeklong orientation at the beginning of the school year and a "social hours" program to practice English with American students.
Maris said that the Counseling Center and multicultural advisers are good resources in helping international students adjust to American life.
In Fall 2009, several people from Housing and Residence Life, the Rinker Center for International Programs and the Counseling Center formed a committee that would brainstorm ideas for a formal international residential living and learning community.
The committee's goal is to maximize the two-way learning experience of American and international students.
Kamala Dontamsetti, director of International Student Recruitment and Admissions at the Rinker Center, said the living and learning communities will give international students the chance to practice American language and culture. American students will get experiences similar to living in another country while still on campus.
Interacting with different people will give students ideas as to where they would like to study abroad, Dontamsetti said.
Students also agree with the benefit they see in the program.
"I think it will impact me in the sense [that] I love different culture so I will definitely want to be involved with that and help them step out of their box," sophomore telecommunications major Nakia Parmalee said.
Dontamsetti said the university is looking to increase the population of international students. She also said the international living and learning communities will be beneficial to Ball State's flourishing campus.
"It's really about our students and exposing them to our global society," Heather Bisher, assistant director for coordination of the living and learning communities, said.
The commmunities are expected to be put into place in Fall 2010.
The university's strategic plan has a goal to double the number of students who participate in enhanced living-learning community opportunities that are academically based and theme-connected by 2012. The university hopes to increase base participation in cultural activities on campus by 20 percent when compared to 2006-07 participation, according to the plan.
Dontamsetti said this is an obtainable goal and she accredited the quality of education for this. She said Muncie is attractive for international students because it is neither a huge metropolitan area nor a rural area.
"In the broader sense, as the international student population at Ball State expands, it is important to ensure that these new students are able to connect with the larger, domestic student population and vice versa," she said. "[It's important] that the domestic students are provided opportunities to interact, share and learn from the diverse experiences our international students bring with them to Muncie."
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