International students

So if you ever wonder why so many of those “rich” international students are always striving to graduate in three years or just earlier than the rest of the class, it may not be the mere fact that we tend to be overachievers by nature. We might have been forced to become this way.

After coming through the gauntlet of midterms and spending much of spring break in a state of acute relief and recovery, it occurred to me that, as challenging as being a full-time Columbia student is, the task would be much more difficult were I not a fluent English speaker. While a lot has been said about Columbia’s position as an international university reaching out to the wider world, what about those students from the wider world who come here, to Columbia?

As many students caught up with friends and family for last week’s annual turkey binge, some of their peers remained on campus for Thanksgiving.

Columbia must focus more effort on cultivating an international community that is socioeconomically diverse and expanding support for foreign students once they arrive on campus, giving them better access to financial aid and housing.

While the School of General Studies has one of the most exciting programs at Columbia, it doesn’t favor poorer students, especially international students.

Things do not always have to be complicated, but cultural values can be confusing. I had a really great relationship with Andrew, my first friend in New York.

There’s college, and there’s college. Both are decidedly American concepts.