The journey and the destination

When someone asks me for the umpteenth time how difficult it is to go to school in a country so far away from home, I almost automatically reply with the oft-repeated answer that it really isn’t any more difficult for me than it is for people who leave their homes in far-flung U.S. states. While I do miss home and bemoan the fact that I can’t visit as often as some of my classmates, it really isn’t that big a deal. Indeed, I’ve repeated the refrain so many times that I may have inadvertently started believing it due to a phenomenon that my psychology professor would love for you all to appreciate.

Realistically speaking, international students have no easy task—going to school thousands and thousands of miles away from home, seeing their families and old friends maybe once a year, and adjusting to a completely new and at times dauntingly unfamiliar environment and culture. One might wonder, then, what motivates the members of the thriving international student community on our campus to undertake this momentous journey, leave behind their hometowns, families, and the ways of life they know and love, and fly across the oceans to this, ”the land of the free and the home of the brave.”

For many international students though, these considerable sacrifices pale in comparison to the benefits and perks of an American education. One of the key factors for many who decide to study in the U.S. is the flexibility the educational system affords. Even today, in many countries across the globe, including mine, students are expected to specialize and decide as early as grade ten on the career paths they eventually intend to pursue. This eventually determines the colleges one would apply to in one’s home country, and by the time one starts college, the career path is pretty much set in stone—students are oftentimes restrained and struck down under the weight of a parochial curriculum and a narrow scope of study.

It is not surprising, then, that the academic flexibility and seamless synthesis of an education rich in both the liberal arts and the sciences, along with the freedom to choose what one would like to study according to one’s own interest, appeal to a large number of students from countries with restrictive curricula and rigid academic structures.

Another major factor that attracts a number of students is the unique campus life experience across colleges in the United States, and the opportunities that it offers. Coming to the U.S. broadens not only your educational experience but also your cultural opportunities. Where else would I enjoy a dinner table discussion with friends from the U.S., Japan, India, Australia, Turkey, Mexico, and the United Arab Emirates? Not many places can boast about this opportunity to interact with people from all over the world and participate in a multitude of student groups and organizations. From an international student’s perspective, that diversity is very valuable. You may choose to live in a completely different environment, being challenged with new situations every day. Yet at times, you may be pleasantly surprised at finding a part of the U.S. that resembles your home country in some ways, and take comfort in those similarities.

In addition to global exposure, experience in such a diverse setting is much desired by employers, and an American education is seen as helping to further long-term career prospects for many students. Indeed, in this era of globalization, as companies strive to establish a stronger global presence, many of them avidly seek the wide range of knowledge, adaptability, and experience that international students acquire by studying in the United States.

At the end of the day, it takes a certain kind of individual to make this life-changing decision and seek the American shores, far away from the comforts and security of home. International students, in making this decision, already embody an inherently American quality—a sense of adventure and the drive to make something out of their lives. Firmly holding on to their dreams and aspirations, they arrive on campuses across the U.S. to begin what they hope will be a journey towards accomplishing all that they seek. These are people willing to go the extra mile, to take that unfamiliar step, and to be the catalysts for change in their own lives by choosing not to tread the conventional path back in their home countries.

And Columbia University, with its diverse student community, liberal outlook, nonchalant campus environment, eminent faculty, location within arguably the most diverse and lively city in the world, and comprehensive Core Curriculum, embodies and personifies the many reasons for which international students choose an American education. Encouraging students to be independent, giving them the freedom to make their own choices, yet grounding them with the knowledge and awareness needed to become responsible and successful future citizens, Columbia strikes the perfect balance. The welcome attitude to diversity on campus—along with the established support networks for international students, beginning with the international programming during New Student Orientation Program and including the efforts of the Society of International Undergraduates and the

International Students and Scholars Office—further endear Columbia to the international student population.

As I walked back from class in the fading daylight, taking in the majestic Butler visage looming over me, mindful of the sounds emanating around campus where the student community is always astir, of the buzzing excitement in the air, and the tingling vibe and energy of New York City right outside, I took a deep breath and realized how glad I was that I had decided to come to Columbia. I rest assured in the fact that most international students have had such moments, and deep down, we all know the answer to the question why so many of us choose to leave our home countries behind to come to the U.S.

The author is a Columbia College first-year. She was a junior board member of the Society for International Undergraduates and is the president-elect for the 2009-2010 school year.