After leaving a family of 20 brothers and sisters, Hadi Alyami came to Ball State University with barely any knowledge of the English language. His first semester here was a struggle, and that changed him as a person.
“I’m really, really good at school and I love it, but it took me 10 hours to read one article,” he says. “The pressure of school eventually took a toll. When I finished the semester, I didn’t eat well or sleep well,” he says.
After a rough semester adjusting, Alyami finally decided if his grades did not equal to the effort he had put forth, he would go back to Saudi Arabia. When he received all A’s for the semester, he realized he had the ability to achieve his goal of getting an American degree.
Ball State’s campus is home to over 700 international students and the university hopes to recruit more in the upcoming semesters.
“The goal is to have about 1,000 international students on campus,” says Kamala Dontamsetti, the director of international student recruitment and admissions.
Since 2008, the campus has recruited over 200 students and the international admissions and recruitment office hopes to reach their goal of having 1,000 students at Ball State within the next few years.
Although these students make up a large population of BSU’s student body, most domestic students are unaware of the cultural experiences they have to share and the extreme adversity they must overcome.
Once Alyami received his bachelor’s degree in Saudi Arabia, he decided he wanted to further pursue his education at an American university. “Back home we are limited in a lot of things,” he said. “Schools are separate for women and men.” Alyami knew that studying in the United States would give him an experience that would not be available to most.
Dontamsetti describes the impact of receiving an American education has on these students coming from different parts of the world. “They want to get that edge in their education where they are able to compare the education that they receive at home with an American program,” she said.
A common theme among many international students is the desire to take back the knowledge and experience they receive here to strengthen their own countries.
Judy Zhu came to Ball State from Anhui, a province of China, to pursue a degree in business. “I really love Ball State, it’s been an amazing experience,” Zhu said. “My characteristics really match this culture.”
Zhu receives a lot of support from her friends whom she calls her “big family”. She says her family includes domestic students and students from China, Japan and many other countries. Her and her family visits each other’s houses, go on trips and even go camping. Zhu says she knows no matter what she may be going through, her friends will always be there. “We have each other,” she says.
One way the university tries to strengthen the bond of its domestic and international students is through a program called the International Conversation Hour. Every Tuesday night at 6, students gather in the third floor of the Student Center to take part in both individual and group discussions.
“By bringing international students to Ball State we are bringing that much needed diversity to the campus,” Dontamsetti said. “Here we are bringing students from almost 60 to 65 countries to the doorstep of the domestic American students.”
Alyami and Zhu are both regulars at the campus’s International Conversation Hour. At the weekly event, domestic students have the opportunity to learn about new cultures and international students can practice their conversational English.
Alyami described a point or experience that everyone faces at least once in their life where it changes who you are as a person. “I think the United States is my change point,” he said.
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