International

‘��-Dearborn is a respected institution . . . I feel very lucky to study here’

stuxbury — Sun, 02 Feb 2025 18:08:09 +0000

‘��-Dearborn is a respected institution . . . I feel very lucky to study here’ stuxbury Sun, 02/02/2025 - 13:08

Sambathchatovong Na is ��-Dearborn’s first Fulbright Scholar studying in a doctoral program. This point of pride can be added to other experiences he’s had. Na, who goes by the first name Vong, is a volunteer researcher with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, commonly known as UNESCO, through their Asia-Pacific Regional Center of the CultureLink Network. Na has also heard President Barack Obama speak — and shook his hand.

Na, who has a reserved, humble nature, appreciates the experiences that he’s had. He sees them as milestones on his path to help others.“President Obama spoke about how we need to work together to effectively solve problems and he encouraged us to not sit back, but to get involved,” says Na, a cybersecurity professional who was selected as a Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative fellow in 2015. This is a still-active program created by the Obama administration that aims to build leadership capabilities and cross-border cooperation for solving global challenges. “I want to be a part of advancing cybersecurity technology — which changes second by second — while also helping shape how it is used through public policy.”

Na is learning to do this through his latest endeavors — studying in the College of Engineering and Computer Science’s Computer Information Systems doctoral program as a Fulbright Scholar, with CIS Professor Di Ma as his advisor. Ma is a cybersecurity and information assurance expert.

Na wants to strengthen his country’s education and legislation in the always-evolving industry by seeing how other nations fight hackers and enforce the safety measures in ways that work for the citizens.“Cambodia, my country, has not passed cybersecurity laws to protect our infrastructure yet. It’s in the process. I’m hoping, with my combined experiences, that I’m a person who can assist with this,” he says. “I am very appreciative that I am here to earn my degree and Dr. Ma is helping me meet my research goals.” His goals include drafting a cybersecurity framework for Cambodia that balances government and citizen needs when it comes to security and privacy, along with appropriate enforcement. Na also hopes that his degree will assist him in contributing to Cambodia’s foreign policy direction in cyber diplomacy.

Na has worked in the cybersecurity field in Cambodia for nearly a decade, both in the private and public sector. He established information technology security and IT governance departments for a bank in his country, Na has served as a cybersecurity-advising official for Cambodia's deputy prime minister cabinet. And Na teaches at two universities — American University of Phnom Penh and Royal University of Phnom Penh — to develop the next generation of Cambodia's cybersecurity experts and grow interest in the field.

“I started with an interest in the technology aspect, but the more we learn and things change — like AI and data-science mining — the more I’ve become interested in the public policy surrounding it,” he says, noting that the U.S. is a good place to study because there are many U.S. protection laws related to cybersecurity.

When applying for the Fulbright award, Na had his sights set on ��-Dearborn after reading about the university’s faculty expertise in the computer science field and seeing the number of research publications. “I looked for the best programs in the United States. ��-Dearborn is a respected institution in my field with professors who have published research in prestigious journals and have connections to industry. I feel very lucky to study here,” he says.

Na earned his undergraduate degree from Royal University of Phnom Penh and a master’s degree in cybersecurity from the University of Southampton in England, where he attended as a Chevening Scholar, which is a fully funded award to study in the United Kingdom.

“I had dreams to study in other countries for programming skills, networking and learning how other countries do things so I can help my country build a framework for cybersecurity. The resources for education in cybersecurity are limited in Cambodia, so I kept looking for ways to go out and bring what I learn back with me so I can teach others,” Na says. “It’s hard to study abroad when you don’t have the money. I kept applying even when I didn’t have success at first. You don’t give up on your dreams.”

Na’s parents must have known about their son’s commitment and drive from the beginning — as evidenced by his name. “My first name, ‘Sambathachatovong,’ is three words put together,” Na says. “‘Sambath’ symbolizes a richness or a wealth. ‘Chato’ is because I am the fourth born. ‘Vong,’ which is short for ‘Vong Trokaul', is for family tree. It’s about working together to bring about a richness. It doesn’t need to be about money, it can be about knowledge or community.”

Now in his second semester at ��-Dearborn, Na says he has met friends, enjoys the campus and has the best of all worlds by being a part of the U-M system. “Both campuses are beautiful and provide very good, but different, things. Going to Ann Arbor is great for being in a busy place and meeting up with friends. Staying in Dearborn is nice because it is peaceful and welcoming and your professors and colleagues look out for you.”

In addition to traveling to Ann Arbor — Na first took the train, which is walking distance from campus, but now has a car — he’s planning to see other parts of Michigan. He especially wants to travel to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to see its forests, rock formations and waterfalls.

Na shares his fun Michigan adventures and plans with his family and friends in Cambodia and looks forward to the day when he can share his completed research work too.“I’ve been building layers of education for many years to help me become a qualified person to help advise my country,” he says. “I am grateful for all of my experiences, but my time at ��-Dearborn is especially important. Earning my PhD here is a big step forward when it comes to reaching my goals.”

Story by Sarah Tuxbury

Graduate Research

International

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Graduate Studies

Off

Sun, 02/02/2025 - 18:07

Meet Sambathchatovong Na, ��-Dearborn’s first doctoral Fulbright Scholar. He’s a cybersecurity professional from Cambodia who’s in CECS’ computer information systems program.

Sambathchatovong Na, who goes by Vong, is ��-Dearborn's first doctoral Fulbright student. Photo by Annie Barker

‘Students from around the world thrive here’

stuxbury — Mon, 27 Jan 2025 13:40:51 +0000

‘Students from around the world thrive here’ stuxbury Mon, 01/27/2025 - 08:40

College of Business graduate student Mohamed Almajed's long-time dream was to study in the United States. He heard stories from his father, Bader, about how the experience changed his life.

“My father studied computer science in the U.S.in the 1980s and told me how it helped him make life-long connections and become a more independent person. He was very successful,” Almajed says. “Hearing him talk about life in the United States, I’ve wanted to study here since I was a child.”

For the past 10 years, the 28-year-old finance professional from Bahrain — Almajed works in Bahrain’s Ministry of Finance and National Economy, where he’s issued loans on the international and domestic side — looked for opportunities. Last year, he found one. Almajed applied and was selected as a Fulbright Scholar to study at ��-Dearborn in the College of Business’ Master in Finance program. He moved to Dearborn and started his classes in the fall.

“Out of the 100 applicants in my country, I was selected. I feel so lucky to have this opportunity to study at ��-Dearborn. My courses have been challenging, but they are led by professors who treat you well and give you the information needed to be successful. I expected my classes to be challenging, but what I didn’t prepare for is how cold it would be. How do people do it?,” asks Almajed, noting that Bahrain's coldest month of the year, January, averages 65 degrees. “You wake up to all this ice and snow on your car. It is beautiful, but it has taken some getting used to.”

Almajed is one of the Fulbright Scholars studying at ��-Dearborn this semester. Office of International Education Assistant Director Emlly Wang says, in the past, the university typically had one or two international Fulbright students at a time — but this academic year there are four. In addition to Bahrain, current Fulbright Scholars are from Cambodia, Kenya and Panama. They all started in the fall and will be on campus until they complete their degree programs. Reporter will be sharing these students’ stories in the next three Tuesday editions.

Fulbright applicants hoping to study in the U.S. list their top university choices, with the Fulbright organization matching them based on academic fit.

“We are becoming more noticed as a destination for Fulbright Scholars to study,” Wang says. “I attribute this to ��-Dearborn’s diverse community, our growing graduate programs and the faculty research happening here. It makes the university attractive for students to list us as a top choice.”

With budget being a major consideration for Fulbright university applicants, she adds that the affordability of the region, along with ��-Dearborn’s tuition costs and scholarship packages, make it attainable. According to a January 2025 Apartments.com comparison, the cost of rent in Dearborn is 21% lower than the national average.

“Students from around the world thrive here,” Wang says. “We at ��-Dearborn believe in providing opportunities for all students. As a community, we ensure that we can make a difference in people's lives here and around the world.” She says faculty and staff from across the university look for ways to make Fulbright students feel at home in a new country. For example, members of the ��-Dearborn community typically help students find furniture and transportation, along with helping them navigate grocery stores and find events to attend like the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Almajed says he’s felt this hospitality, especially in the classroom. Even with the rigor of his graduate-level finance courses, he says his professors — especially COB faculty Vivek Singh, Mercedes Miranda and Zhixin (Jason) Liu — are very supportive and welcoming.

“In addition to my professors being experts in the fields, they are also very patient and understanding. They also have lived and studied in other countries before coming to the U.S. They understand what it is like to move somewhere new that’s away from your family to build a life,” he says. “Their kindness helped make the transition easier.”

With the first semester in the books, Almajed says he did well in his classes and passed the Bloomberg Market Concepts Certification through his course with Singh. Almajed looks forward to branching out beyond studies for the winter semester and plans to find a finance internship for the summer and take a trip to Chicago in the spring.

Almajed says his experience has been personally fulfilling and he expects it to help him professionally too. He believes understanding finance from a U.S. perspective and learning how other countries handle debt will help him as the Bahrain Ministry of Finance’s head of domestic issuance, as his home country is currently looking at ways to curb inflation.

“I plan to build relationships and gain knowledge that I will take back with me to Bahrain. I want to help build connections between these two homes of mine, just like my father did. I wish I could live this moment with him. My father passed in 2013 when I was 16 years old,” Almajed says. “But he's always with me because he continues to guide me. I know he’s seeing all the things I am accomplishing. I hope he’s proud.”

Not only is this experience beneficial to Fulbright students like Almajed — it also brings another layer of international experience at the university. For example, Wang says, a ��-Dearborn undergraduate student recently spoke with Almajed about what it’s like to live in Bahrain. The student has family history in Bahrain and wants to teach there, but has not traveled internationally.

“For our ��-Dearborn students who haven’t had the opportunity to travel yet, these students open windows into what life is like somewhere else. The Fulbright program fosters mutual understanding between nations and advances knowledge across communities. The world would have fewer conflicts with more understanding among nations and people if we had more exchanges like this,” Wang says. “The Fulbright program gives us an opportunity to live and learn with people from different cultures so we can all become a part of a wider global network.”

Story by Sarah Tuxbury

COB Graduate Programs

Off

Mon, 01/27/2025 - 13:40

��-Dearborn hosts Fulbright Scholars from Bahrain, Cambodia, Kenya and Panama this academic year. Meet Mohamed Almajed, a finance professional from Bahrain who’s studying in the College of Business.

Fulbright student Mohamed Almajed, pictured in Fairlane Center South's Bloomberg Finance Lab, is a COB student in the Master of Finance program. Photo by Annie Barker

The (solar) power of teamwork

lblouin — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 14:46:29 +0000

The (solar) power of teamwork lblouin Wed, 11/13/2024 - 09:46

Sustainable energy is a growing field, with opportunities for students working toward a number of different majors, especially in engineering. But when two students saw a need for more ways to develop hands-on experience on the University of Michigan-Dearborn campus, they took the lead to launch a collaboration with a national organization providing just that.

Christian Cannon and Alexis Thompson not only brought GRID Alternatives to ��-Dearborn but — as co-presidents of the university's student chapter — united the group with the Ann Arbor campus to provide meaningful experiences installing solar energy systems in San Diego County, Los Angeles and even Nepal. Cannon — a 2024 environmental science graduate — now works as a clean energy business development intern at Walker-Miller Energy Services in Detroit. Thompson has been working as a consultant for sustainability projects while completing her degree in mathematics, with a certificate in geographic information systems.

Cannon and Thompson began exploring a partnership with GRID Alternatives, the largest nonprofit solar installer in the United States, out of a shared interest in gaining hands-on experience in the clean energy field. While attending the Solar Power International conference in Las Vegas in 2017, they met Tim Sears and Erica Mackie, the co-founders of GRID Alternatives, who helped connect Cannon and Thompson with the then-leaders of their affiliated student group chapter — GRID Alternatives Students for Sustainable Energy — on the ��-Ann Arbor campus. Soon after that meeting, Cannon and Thompson became the co-presidents of a newly united U-M chapter under the guidance of faculty advisor Tony Reames, an associate professor in U-M’s School of Environment and Sustainability, and Eva Gogola, ��-Dearborn’s director of annual giving and advancement services.

Students participating in GRID take part in an immersive service-learning opportunity called Solar Spring Break, providing students with hands-on experience at GRID locations in different regions throughout the country and abroad. The students also volunteer to install solar panels in low-income neighborhoods. "This work represents an invaluable opportunity for students to gain real-world experience in the clean energy industry," Cannon says.

One challenge student-run organizations face, however, is funding. Like GRID-affiliated chapters across the U.S., the U-M chapter had to raise money for the solar installation equipment, travel and other expenses. Thompson stressed the need for equity in these efforts, pushing back against the trend that the students who are able to participate in such opportunities are only those who can personally afford to do so. "One of the things we wanted, which has not always been the case with other GRID campus groups, was to send people to work in these communities who look like those communities," Thompson says.

Cannon and Thompson worked closely with Mariah Fiumara, director of U-M’s Engineering Center for Student Organizations, to raise funds through competitive grants, business sponsorships and local fundraising efforts, while Ann Arbor GRID member Camille Burke, a 2020 grad, rallied support from other student-run organizations. The group raised more than $100,000, which supported a dedicated team of 100 students from both campuses. "I want to stress that this is something students can do, that it is possible," Thompson says. "We want this work to continue for ��-Dearborn and Ann Arbor students."

The group took part in three Solar Spring Breaks, the first installing solar energy systems on the La Jolla Indian Reservation near San Diego, the second installing in residential homes in Los Angeles and the most recent on the Kumal Tower in Nepal's Chitwan National Park. Together, these initiatives represent more than 40 kW of solar capacity — an amount that can typically supply electricity to about 10 average U.S. homes while offsetting 40 tons of carbon dioxide.

Camille Burke, Christian Cannon and Alexis Thompson (top row, second, third and fourth from left) with fellow GRID members on the Kumal Tower.

"Our campus was the first university to conduct an international trip through GRID Alternatives’ Solar Spring Break program," Cannon says of the group's work in Nepal. The idea for an international installation took root with the group's first experience on the La Jolla Reservation, where the proximity to Tijuana, Mexico, inspired the team to provide sustainable energy to lower-income areas beyond U.S. borders. While the logistics were unfavorable for a Solar Spring Break in Mexico, the students found an ideal opportunity to do meaningful work rehabilitating Nepal’s Kumal Tower, a disused watchtower that previously did not have a functioning power supply, converting it into a fully functional wildlife observation center.

Members of GRID Alternatives Students for Sustainable Energy found their experiences installing solar energy systems meaningful on both professional and personal levels. “Working with GRID Alternatives taught me how my engineering skills could make sustainable energy accessible to those who need it most," says Yesha Lester, a 2019 ��-Ann Arbor grad. "I gained hands-on experience with solar technology and saw the power of community-focused projects. Knowing our work would lower a family’s bills made the project rewarding and showed me that engineering is about improving lives, not just solving technical problems.”

While GRID has not been active at ��-Dearborn since 2022 because Solar Spring Break programs were paused for the pandemic, Cannon has been speaking with other sustainability groups on campus about adopting solar work and leading more sustainability-focused international projects in the future. He says the rewards for interested students are well worth the effort: "Working with GRID Alternatives has deepened my academic learning and shaped me into a leader within the clean energy industry.”

###

Story by Shaun Manning. Photos courtesy of Christian Cannon.

Careers or Internships

Experiential Learning

International

Sustainability

Off

Wed, 11/13/2024 - 14:43

Alum Christian Cannon and student Alexis Thompson led GRID Alternatives Students for Sustainable Energy, an inter-campus student group providing hands-on experience in renewable energy.

Christian Cannon, left, helps install solar panels on the roof of the Kumal Tower, a disused watchtower in Nepal.

‘You see how integrated we are globally’

stuxbury — Mon, 16 Sep 2024 13:09:44 +0000

‘You see how integrated we are globally’ stuxbury Mon, 09/16/2024 - 09:09

��-Dearborn students who study abroad have unique reasons for choosing their destination country and different goals for their experiences. Some students may feel financial or other obstacles to working toward their degree in another country — but among this year's nearly 70 students who traveled through ��-Dearborn’s Study Abroad experiences, many were able to access financial aid and other resources that allowed them to fulfill their goals.

Want to learn more about upcoming Study Abroad opportunities and financial support to attend the programs? Visit the Study Abroad website or reach out to Global Engagement Director Scott Riggs.

Students proudly hold up a ��-Dearborn flag while exploring Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico

Christian Cannon graduated from ��-Dearborn in spring 2024 with a BS in environmental science and a minor in business management. He’s currently working as a clean energy business development intern at Walker-Miller Energy Services, one of the largest Black, woman-owned energy firms in the United States. Before he started his position, he traveled to Puerto Rico, thanks to financial support from the Go-Global Guarantee program.

"I've actually been aware of the study abroad program for a while, but I didn't have the financial ability to do it in the past," Cannon says. As a rising senior, Cannon reached out to Geology Professor Jacob Napieralski to inquire about an upcoming environmental field course to Puerto Rico and what it would take for him to attend it. “I was able to afford the cost of the trip thanks to the generous Go-Global Scholarship," Cannon says.

Cannon says he enjoys traveling with his wife, and has previously spent time in Mexico, Jamaica, Belize. He’s also and has conducted solar installation projects in Nepal when he served as co-president of U-M’s GRID Alternatives Students for Sustainable Energy.

During his nine days in Puerto Rico, Cannon and his team joined University of Puerto Rico Physical Science and Geology Professor Pablo Llerandi-Roman and his team of researchers in the field, learning about rare wildlife like fluorescent insects and Puerto Rico’s national animal, the Coqui frog. They also had the opportunity to visit Sandra Farms, one of the largest family-owned sustainable coffee farms in the country. "They gave us a VIP experience from start to finish," Cannon says, which included tasting several varieties of the Adjuntas-grown hand-picked coffee with the owners of the estate. Adjuntas is a small mountainside town in the territory.

His field experience in Puerto Rico also emphasized for Cannon the ways that habitats are affected and endangered by climate change. "I think that anybody that travels internationally, you see how integrated we are globally," Cannon says. "The one thing I noticed as a common issue is that the natural environment and landscape in these areas are increasingly being destroyed by human activities like pollution, deforestation and other consequences accumulating to higher levels of global warming. Reducing our carbon footprint and addressing the causes of climate change is a global concern that demands a unified effort, with proactive solutions from every individual.”

Throughout his study abroad experience, Cannon packed a lot into his nine days on the islands. "Our environmental field course in Puerto Rico focused on observing the overall regional geology, studying the ecology of subtropical environments, conducting coral reef health assessments, and identifying environmental hazards," he says. Cannon and other students in his cohort served as scientific researchers, engaging in everything from "climbing the mountains in the El Yunque National Rainforest to swimming with endangered species like sea turtles in the ocean."

Cannon plans to build on his experience in Puerto Rico as he begins his career as an environmental scientist in the clean energy industry. He also hopes to collaborate with ��-Dearborn's Natural Sciences Department to develop a similar study abroad fieldwork course in Belize.

"Belize is home to the world’s largest living coral reef system, which serves as a vital model of sustainability and conservation," Cannon says. "The country’s efforts in preserving this natural wonder highlight how strategic environmental management can protect biodiversity while supporting local economies and combating climate change."

Dan Kimura explored Italy during his summer study abroad experience.

Padua, Italy

This summer's journey to Padua, Italy, was not marketing major Dan Kimura's first study abroad experience — he comes to ��-Dearborn from Brazil. "In the beginning, I thought that it would not be possible for me to study abroad while I'm studying abroad," he says. "But doing some research, I realized that it was plausible and it was attainable."

Kimura says he chose Italy for his study abroad program — the International Summer Program in Management — in part because it offered an organizational behavior class, which he had wanted to take to fulfill degree requirements. "It worked perfectly in my schedule," he says. "The class was really dynamic, it was almost like a psychology class." Kimura and other students, led by College of Business faculty Diana Smrt, studied at the University of Padua.

More significant to his choice of locale, Kimura visited Italy as a young child and wanted to spend more time with the culture. "I remember going to Rome and to other famous places, but not deeply going inside the culture and the way people think there," he says. "This program was a good experience for me to get to know the country, truly."

Along these lines, Kimura says he was striving for "the most local experience possible."

"I played soccer once with some of my friends there. I tried to eat somewhere different every day and go to really traditional places and not only the touristic things," he says. "I think the lifestyle that I had in Italy was really valuable for me, even more than the class itself and the knowledge that I got from the class."

Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, one of Kimura's favorite aspects of the study abroad program was the people he met in his journey.

"I made really good friends there," he says. He described the European students he met as "eager to know different cultures" and having "a curiosity to do different things," which understandably resonated with the well-traveled ��-Dearborn senior.

Last week, Reporter featured seniors Hope Pacheco and Vincent Intrieri, who shared their own experiences traveling to Poland and Canada.

Students took classes at the University of Padua while on COB's International Summer Program in Management.

Story by Shaun Manning

Experiential Learning

International

College of Business

Off

Mon, 09/16/2024 - 13:08

Senior Dan Kimura and ’24 grad Christian Cannon crafted unique and meaningful experiences for their study abroad journeys.

Christian Cannon visited Puerto Rico on a summer Study Abroad trip. Photo courtesy of Christian Cannon

"An experience that I'll never forget'

stuxbury — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 19:59:32 +0000

"An experience that I'll never forget' stuxbury Wed, 09/11/2024 - 15:59

��-Dearborn students get a world-class education that, for many, is close to home. But for those who want to realize their academic goals farther away, the university has options for that too. This year, nearly 70 students traveled through ��-Dearborn’s Study Abroad experiences. They were supported by $110,000 awarded in scholarships and financial aid.

Gaining vital life experiences and learning to navigate the world — in addition to fulfilling graduation requirements — Dearborn Wolverines traveled to Italy, Poland, Puerto Rico and Canada this summer. This article focuses on two of those experiences; two more will be shared in Tuesday’s Reporter.

Want to learn more about upcoming Study Abroad opportunities and financial support to attend the programs? Visit the Study Abroad website or reach out to Global Engagement Director Scott Riggs.

Students in front of the Polish Wall of Solidarity

Gdańsk, Poland

Senior Hope Pacheco, a history major in the Honors Program, had never left the U.S. before. Now she has a new sense of independence and cultural appreciation after traveling to Gdańsk, Poland as part of Dearborn Discovery Core study abroad.

"I got my passport for this trip. I gained confidence in myself," says Pacheco, who adds that the ��-Dearborn faculty advisors on the trip helped support and prepare her for her adventure. "I was truly, for once, just relying on myself and having to get through everything while we were there."

Pacheco wanted to study in Gdańsk in part because of its role in the earliest days of World War II. While she does not have a military background herself, Pacheco wants to teach military history and was curious about how people outside of the United States view the world wars. "Learning World War II history from Poland's perspective and the Polish people's perspective added a lot for me," she says, noting that her education so far has focused almost entirely on the U.S. perspective. “Most Polish people don’t talk about the Second World War on a normal basis, but a realization for me was that they took great care to honor the city again to reconstruct everything to look the way it did before the war. With reconstructing the city to its original form it is able to show people how strong of a country Poland is to come back from being part of the war since the beginning."

Pacheco took three classes at the University of Gdańsk during her two months there. She learned about the engineering principles of human-centered design, as well as significant moments in Polish history including the Solidarity movement of the 1980s. Her favorite was a history course about the city of Gdańsk, which was founded in the 10th century. She learned how it was designed and about the reconstruction efforts due to the world wars and other conflicts in the area.

While in Poland, she saw the 13th-century Malbork Castle, which was damaged during World War II and has since been restored. She walked the grounds of Krakow, Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps. And she visited several museums, including the Main Town Hall Museum and Uphagen's House, a reconstruction of a house from the 18th century. During her free time, Pacheco and her roommates took a train to visit Norway. "We were able to walk around the city of Bergen and compare it to the city of Gdańsk," she says. "We were also able to swim in the North Sea with jellyfish and go hiking."

“There was so much to learn,” she says. “It was an experience I’ll never forget.”

Student Vincent Intrieri and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Ottawa, Canada

Vincent Intrieri has traveled the world through his 13-year career in the U.S. Navy. He’s made a lot of friends, visited several countries and seen the importance of cultural awareness and diplomacy. Intrieri, who’s majoring in international studies, started at ��-Dearborn in 2022 with the goal of becoming a diplomat.

Even with all his travel experiences, what Intrieri hadn’t been able to do is see the inner workings of an international government. The senior was intrigued by ��-Dearborn’s Ottawa Political Internship Program, a five-week study abroad experience where students work as legislative staffers in the Canadian Parliament. Run for 40-plus years, it’s the oldest American internship program operating in Canada.

Intrieri saw the study abroad program as an opportunity to expand upon his experience in the Navy and learn more about the United States’ neighbor to the north. Intrieri worked in the Canadian Parliament's House of Commons. Working for legislative assistant Simon Wood, Intrieri helped review legislation and policies and write policy analyses for Member of Parliament Marcus Powlowski. Intrieri says his favorite part of the study abroad experience was the daily interactions with staff in Powlowski's office. "I really enjoyed the frank conversations about geopolitics or happenings going on within the Canadian government, the American government and the world," Intieri says. Another highlight was experiencing the history of Parliament Hill, the home to Canada’s federal government. "One thing that really stands out to me about that trip is understanding the sacrifices that Canadians have made for democracy," Intrieri says, citing Canadian efforts to secure Berlin during World War II by conducting successful missions north of the city. "That will resonate with me, how many sacrifices the Canadian people have made for democracy and freedom and oftentimes, have never even been thanked."

Outside of his workdays, Intrieri also enjoyed visiting the Canadian War Museum and the Canadian Museum of History, and having dinner with other members of the Ottawa study abroad class, with the restaurant Joey Rideau being a highlight. "I enjoyed the eclectic menu there," he says. "My personal favorite was the sushi. It was very fresh. Also, the Mediterranean Bowl consists of harissa chicken, chickpeas, artichokes, roasted peppers, Kalamata olives, gem tomatoes, jasmine rice, hummus and tzatziki. I especially enjoyed the shawarma in Ottawa; it was easily accessible and delicious."

Intrieri says he can see himself living in Ottawa one day and encourages interested students to consider studying abroad. "It was more than just a great experience, it was transformative,” he says. “I made friendships that will last a lifetime."

Story by Shaun Manning

Experiential Learning

International

Student Engagement

Off

Wed, 09/11/2024 - 19:58

Seniors Hope Pacheco and Vincent Intrieri took part in ��-Dearborn study abroad programs and shared what it was like spending their summer living and studying in different countries.

CASL student Hope Pacheco, far left, is pictured in Poland with History Professor Anna Müller, CECS student Solomiya Pylypiv and History Associate Professor Kristin Poling. Photo courtesy Kristin Poling

Thank you, ��-Dearborn!

stuxbury — Mon, 01 May 2023 15:41:40 +0000

Thank you, ��-Dearborn! stuxbury Mon, 05/01/2023 - 11:41

I barely knew anyone when I arrived here from India in August 2021 to prepare for the first semester of my master’s program in Automotive Systems Engineering. Leaving my family and friends behind and moving to a new country to study and grow was practically restarting my life from scratch. I did have the support of my family and loved ones that kept me going, and I am fortunate enough to have had it from day one.

To my fellow international students: I commend your bravery and resolve to move so far away from home and be determined to grow your career exactly the way you want. I also commend your faith that you can create a home wherever you go.

To incoming international students: I want to tell you that it gets easier with time. I still remember spending my first week or so understanding just how “cheap” or “expensive” things are based on dollar amounts and using my absolute willpower not to convert currencies. Pro tip: Don’t convert dollars to your money. Ever. The sooner you start living like an American, at least in my opinion, the easier it will be to integrate yourself into the American culture and way of life. As long as your focus is clear, the results will show in whatever you pursue — even simple things like grocery shopping, figuring out utilities and getting around town to explore.

With every new experience, you learn and grow more confident — which makes you want to learn and explore more. One of my favorite memories was taking a road trip with friends where we covered six states in just a week. I also went to Mackinac Island and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Both were very beautiful. I’m also proud to have earned the (M)Talent honor, maintaining a high GPA and landing a job in the automotive industry where I’m working on driver assistance systems and autonomous vehicles.

To all students: Even though there’s stress from exams and projects, you will fondly reflect on the fun instances in your story when you look back. I would change nothing if I had to go back and redo my chapter here in Dearborn, from living here to studying, to the classes I took, the friends I made and the opportunities I dove headfirst into. I didn’t know what the outcome would be — I was in it for the experience. Everything you decide to partake in is worth the effort. You can only gain as much from your student experience as the effort you put into it.

��-Dearborn has something for everyone. You need only try to find what resonates with you, be it clubs, organizations, academic and cultural programs, research opportunities and more. ��-Dearborn truly provides the potential to make your journey here unique.

This rollercoaster ride has been nothing short of an exhilarating one. I got jobs in the U.S., first on campus and then in the “real world.” And I collaborated and worked on a dozen projects and research over two years, trying out different programs to help me prepare for my career and more. As I leave my school behind, I remind myself that I am and will be a lifelong Wolverine.

To my friends, professors and staff: You’ve made a difference in my life. I bid adieu for now, but it will never be a goodbye. There will always be a “see you next time.” Go Blue! Go Dearborn!

Commencement

International

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Graduate Studies

Off

Mon, 05/01/2023 - 15:41

Class of 2023 graduate Rudra Mehta, a Reporter editorial assistant, reflects on his experiences that he gained as an international student and Dearborn Wolverine.

Rudra Mehta earned his graduate degree on April 30.

An international initiative in a College of Business classroom provided knowledge, experiential learning in entrepreneurship

rudmehta — Thu, 02 Feb 2023 19:08:27 +0000

An international initiative in a College of Business classroom provided knowledge, experiential learning in entrepreneurship rudmehta Thu, 02/02/2023 - 14:08

With the soft leather material, vibrant print and interesting pattern work, the backpacks student Kristina Lee evaluated for market viability in her College of Business course weren’t like anything the senior had seen before. But the items’ intrigue went beyond fashionably unusual; they also played a part in a unique educational opportunity.

Lee’s MKT 454: Market Research class took part in an international initiative called the Digital Futures Fellowship Program where students — guided by their professor, mentors and experienced multicultural business owners — work directly with African entrepreneurs to help the small-to-mid-sized retailers evaluate their “going global” potential.

The program — created by the Detroit-based Virtual Global Consultant (VGC) Group — piloted in the class led by Marketing Associate Professor Crystal Scott earlier this year. The VGC Group, a digital business consulting and e-commence design and development service, is a frequent partner of the College of Business and was recognized as the COB 2018 Employer of the Year for providing internship and employment opportunities for students.

“The Digital Futures program gave me the chance to meet people from the other side of the world to help me better understand how they do entrepreneurship and see how my knowledge could help them break into the U.S. market,” says Lee, who was in a class group partnered with a clothing and accessory designer named Aaron Scissorhands; the eight other business enterprises the class worked with created items like organic African skincare and hair products and African-dyed fabrics.

The VGC Group co-founders Naomi Jordan Cook and W.E. Da’Cruz provided both in-person and virtual mentoring and support to the COB students for the duration of the three-month program. The women also shared cultural information and made virtual introductions for the student groups to the nine Ghanaian entrepreneurs.

“In Ghana, the traditional way to do business is in your store-front at your home or at the market with neighbors and the people you know. We do not want to replace their cultural tradition, but we do want to help get viable authentic African products out to a wider audience,” says Da’Cruz, who lived in Ghana as a child. “Our vision is to help people, organizations and businesses go global. We believe eCommerce is a vehicle that drives economic development. Our job at VGC is to build the vehicle and put as many people in the driver’s seat.”

Scott said working with the West African businesses and helping plan for e-commerce expansion allowed students to apply what they’ve been learning in their COB classes and expand their skill set.

She says the students learned about the logistics issues many businesses in Africa face — for example infrastructure concerns include intermittent electricity and limited road infrastructure in some areas — from the people who are experiencing this.

“They also saw the resilience and work ethic many have in spite of it,” says Scott, COB assistant dean. “We can teach the quantitative part of research in class, but the Digital Futures Fellowship Program gave our students experience in qualitative research too. They did interviews and created a plan by working with an actual client, a client from West Africa.”

And it’s an experience that’s needed: In a program pre-assessment, nearly 75-percent of the 30 students said they want to pursue international business after graduation, but a majority of the class had never engaged with anyone from Africa or even engaged with authentic African-made products.

“Our students need to know about all of the entrepreneurship happening in Africa — there are at least 400 different African companies with revenues of more than $1 billion (U.S. dollars),” Scott says. “And the profitability and growth are in all different sectors, not just tech. Africa is where to look if you are interested in international business; the opportunities you can get involved with run the gamut.”

After a semester of research, the students presented their findings and submitted their research reports to the VGC Group in a two-day reporting session. The research findings included recommendations a market viability report and how the companies can expand and increase their sales globally. Lee’s group said that Aaron Scissorhands has products would have global interest, but suggests he invest in a stronger online presence before expanding; for example, build up his social media presence and customer interaction before engaging with a U.S. audience.

Da’Cruz and Cook recently traveled to West Africa to go over next steps individually with the entrepreneurs and with program logistics partner DHL Ghana. “It was important for us to engage with the African companies in person to build trust and to show our commitment about building their brands globally,” explains Cook. Scott also is planning a trip to West Africa in the near future.

The three business women say the venture is showing signs of success — all nine enterprises are in the process of having a well-designed online presence — and the partnership will continue through the campus course next academic year.

Experiential Learning

International

College of Business

Off

Wed, 06/19/2019 - 05:00

Students — guided by their professor, mentors and experienced multicultural business owners — assessed global product expansion by working directly with African business owners.

What’s driving the international student boom at ��-Dearborn?

lblouin — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 20:01:02 +0000

What’s driving the international student boom at ��-Dearborn? lblouin Wed, 01/11/2023 - 15:01

Bharat Kudachi, an electrical engineering master’s student and recent president of the Indian Graduate Student Association (IGSA), was one of the first people to notice that 2022 might be an explosive year for international student enrollment. The particular leading indicator he was watching was a surging number of students on the IGSA WhatsApp group, which most incoming Indian students join so they can pick the brains of current students. On the one hand, the growth was exciting. But because IGSA also helps students with things like rides from the airport and finding housing, Kudachi and IGSA treasurer Siddharth Jain immediately began thinking about logistics. In particular, Kudachi was concerned about finding everyone a place to live. Here at ��-Dearborn, of course, the university doesn't operate any residential housing, so international students typically land either at The Union or two nearby apartment complexes with a university-operated shuttle service. Kudachi checked, however, and those three venues were already running at or near capacity. So in April, he decided to drop a quick email to Trista Wdziekonski, executive director of graduate enrollment management, just to make sure this issue was on the university’s radar. Kudachi remembers the subject line included the phrase, “Quick Reply Needed.”

Kudachi got that quick reply. Not surprisingly, Wdziekonski had been closely watching the numbers too, and she was also seeing a potentially historic international student class on the horizon. During the pandemic, most universities, including ��-Dearborn, saw a drop in international student enrollment. Now, applications were not only rebounding but blowing past pre-pandemic levels. Because international students tend to apply to a greater number of schools and admitted students must also complete additional steps like I-20 forms and visa interviews, Wdziekonski knew that the number of applicants doesn’t translate into number of enrolled students. But if historic trends held, it could easily be the biggest class of international students ever at the university. When everything fell into place in August, that’s exactly what materialized. At the start of the Fall 2022 semester, 870 international students on F-1 or J-1 visas were taking classes at ��-Dearborn, comprising more than 10% of total enrollment at the university. Three hundred sixty one of them, or around 40%, were brand new this year.

Dig into the numbers and you’ll find lots of interesting storylines. As in past years, students from India are by far the biggest group by country. They make up 71% of the total, indicating the strength and durability of one of our longest-running international student pipelines. Also dominant: the College of Engineering and Computer Science, home to 82% of our international students, which is a clear demonstration that our STEM programs continue to be the big draw. Graduate students make up 88% of the total, which interestingly, runs counter to the nationwide trend, which is tilted 60/40 toward undergraduates. The group is also increasingly diverse. 2022’s class has students from 49 countries. And though students from India are the biggest community, eight countries are represented by populations in the double digits, four of which have more than 20 students (China, Lebanon, Oman and Nigeria). On the flip side, for 23 students, they’re the only ones from their country. For another five students, there’s just one other person from their country

International student enrollment by country

As you can see, students from India make up the vast majority of international students at ��-Dearborn. The "Other" category, shown above, represents students from Albania (3), Brazil (3), Egypt (3), Italy (3), Singapore (3), Argentina (2), Armenia (2), Sri Lanka (2), Thailand (2), Turkey (2), Botswana (1), Costa Rica (1), Ethiopia (1), Ghana (1), Indonesia (1), Ivory Coast (1), Japan (1), Kenya (1), Kuwait (1), Mexico (1), Norway (1), Peru (1), Philippines (1), Romania (1), Russia (1), Rwanda (1), Saudi Arabia (1), South Africa (1), UAE (1), Venezuela (1), West Bank (1), Yemen (1) and Zimbabwe (1). Graphic by Violet Dashi

So what’s driving this big uptick in enrollment? Wdziekonski and her colleague Francisco Lopez, ��-Dearborn’s director of international affairs, cite a range of factors. As with many things, the pandemic is still exerting an influence. Specifically, travel restrictions, drawn-out timelines for student visa processing, and general financial instability over the past two years caused many international students to delay their study abroad plans. Now, with COVID-19 reaching a less disruptive endemic phase and visa processing getting back to normal, Lopez says the dam of “pent-up demand” is bursting. Nationwide, international student enrollment at American universities nearly bounced back to pre-pandemic levels this year. On average, colleges reported an average increase of 7% in new international students, though levels have varied by institution.

Still, this national trend doesn’t explain everything that’s happening at ��-Dearborn, where total international enrollment is up more than 45% over pre-pandemic levels. Though it’s hard to say definitively, Lopez and Wdziekonski suspect a couple contributing factors. Perhaps most importantly, engineering and computer science continue to be the most popular disciplines for international students nationwide, and we happen to have strong programs in these areas. These disciplines are also popular among students from India, where we’re drawing the lion’s share of our students. In addition, Lopez says we have very high rates of students landing professional opportunities outside the university, both during their studies, known as Curricular Practical Training (CPT), and after they graduate, known as Optional Practical Training (OPT). “In a normal pre-pandemic semester, it was common to process 60 to 80 CPTs, and the most pre-pandemic CPT authorizations we processed was about 100,” Lopez says. “This fall, we authorized over 180 — about an 80% increase. So out of 398 eligible students, about 46% received CPT.” Lopez says stats are a little harder to gauge for OPT, the U.S. government program that allows students up to 36 months of post-graduation employment without having to change their immigration status. But participation is undoubtedly high at ��-Dearborn: Since 2019, we’ve averaged about 440 OPT students per semester. “Our international students are getting incredible placements while they’re studying with us and killer jobs after they graduate,” Wdziekonski says. “And that’s about the best marketing you can have for incoming students.”

In fact, Wdziekonski and Lopez say word of mouth is likely another big reason for the recent surge in international student enrollment. When students have a positive experience at ��-Dearborn, they naturally tell their friends and family about it, which spreads the word to new potential students in a very authentic and organic way. As with other types of immigration, sometimes populations reach a critical mass, and an area becomes known more generally for being a welcoming spot for a particular group. We could be reaching such a tipping point, for example, with career-focused Indian students who are looking for programs in engineering and computer science. And even among our students who are the only ones from their countries, Wdziekonski says she knows of at least one new student who’s “nursing along five or six others” back home who are now interested in studying here. “If a student has a good experience, that word of mouth thing can happen really quickly,” she says.

International student enrollment by college

Graphic by Violet Dashi

The new ways we’re getting the word out to international students could also be playing a role. During the pandemic, info sessions for prospective students all flipped to an online format, and Wdziekonski says this model frankly worked better for international students. Lopez says they’ve also worked really hard to include topics that transcend academics. “We’re including more information about the visa process, or how to find housing, or making sure that students are well-prepared for life in Dearborn and know what to expect before they arrive. And you see students in these sessions using the chat to network and share their WhatsApp groups, which I think is a really positive sign.” Parallel to some of the challenges faced by first-generation domestic college students, Lopez says this style of outreach and networking can be particularly crucial for students coming from countries that don’t have an established history of sending students to American universities.

Unsurprisingly, this growth spurt hasn’t occurred without some growing pains. As Kudachi anticipated, housing was the biggest challenge this fall. As the numbers of new students continued to rise, and with spots in the usual apartment complexes filling up, he and other members of IGSA did what they do and flipped into troubleshooting mode. They started calling around and, before long, discovered a fourth apartment building near campus that still had dozens of leases available. He looped in folks at the university, who stepped up to help with some additional logistics, like convincing the building manager that an I-20 form is a good stand-in for a credit report. The facilities team joined the effort and arranged a new shuttle route. And IGSA opened up their WhatsApp group so students from any country could network, find roommates and find a couch to crash on temporarily if all else failed. “Obviously, it can be very stressful to have your plane ticket and not know where you’re going to be staying when you arrive,” Kudachi says. “We didn’t want to leave anyone in that situation. So we put a call out to all the members of IGSA, and so many people volunteered to share their homes. I think being a student, we’ve all been in the same place, so they understand what it feels like.”

Under Bharat Kudachi's leadership, the Indian Graduate Student Association stepped up to help find housing for a historic class of international students. Photo courtesy Bharat Kudachi

In the end, everyone found a permanent place to stay, though some students did end up outside the four-building network that’s served by the university shuttle. For these students, Uber is often their costly alternative to get back and forth to campus. Even for students living in places served by the shuttle, transportation can be a regular challenge. The shuttle takes students to and from campus several times a day, and on the weekends, to three different grocery stores, including an Indian grocery. But outside of that, students are on their own for say, a Target run, a mid-week resupply, a trip to a restaurant or a visit to the doctor. Kudachi says students more often turn to the WhatsApp group to catch a ride with someone who has a car rather than public transportation, which he says just takes way too long to get anywhere. In fact, Lopez and Wdziekonski say housing and transportation really need to be thought of as a single challenge. “I think that’s the big question: Is there a certain capacity or limit when it comes to our international student enrollment, given the unique situation of our campus?” Lopez says. “We’re a commuter campus, there’s not very good public transit in our area, students from abroad don’t typically have cars, there are only so many units within walking distance, and even fewer that are served by a university shuttle. So it’s a really interesting opportunity, because the demand appears to be there. But it’s probably going to take a creative solution.”

On that front, Wdziekonski says the university will soon be launching a working group to deal directly with this housing-transportation dynamic. They’re currently looking into a better system for roommate matching, as well as new agreements with leasing companies to hold more spots for international students. But given the additional complicating factor of a nationwide housing shortage, more outside-of-the-box options are also on the table. For example, their team recently learned of an apartment building that has traditionally served senior residents that had enough openings to potentially justify another shuttle route. Similarly, there are neighborhoods within commuting distance to Dearborn, like Detroit’s Rosedale Park, with high concentrations of seniors who would like to “age in place” in their homes, but who might benefit financially from renting a room to a young person. For Wdziekonski, the immediate question is whether these kinds of nontraditional housing situations would appeal to our students. And even if they did, any location beyond walking distance would still need an accompanying transportation solution.

As the university and student organization partners like IGSA sort through these larger logistical issues, they’re also focused on improving the non-academic experience of international students. As a newly arriving Indian student, you may not face a huge challenge finding a community. But if you’re the only one from your country, it can be far trickier to make friends and build professional connections. To that end, the university helped launch the Graduate International Student Organization (GISO) in 2019, which Wdziekonski says was inspired by the widely successful IGSA model. And they’re constantly trying to think of new ways to expand cultural opportunities for students, like planned trips to downtown Detroit. This year, the Student Activities Board organized a trip to Cedar Point, which was hugely successful and disproportionately enjoyed by international students.

Francisco Lopez, ��-Dearborn’s director of international affairs, says the university is increasingly focused on enriching the non-academic lives of international students. Lawn games available for free checkout at the Student Engagement Center give students new ways to hang out and be social on campus. Photo courtesy Office of International Affairs

Amidst these uncertainties and challenges, there is no doubt opportunity. This surge in international students accompanies the start of a long-anticipated decline in domestic student enrollment, owing to Michigan’s aging population and shrinking classes of high school seniors. Having solid plans to accommodate growth in international student enrollment could be key to maintaining the university’s financial health and growing its cultural vitality. Many of the details of that effort will fall to folks like Lopez and Wdziekonski, who tend to mull over the finer points of this puzzle even when they’re not at work. But in some sense, it will be on all of us. At a recent town hall, in a discussion of hybrid work, Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Gabriella Scarlatta reminded faculty and staff that our international students are one of the reasons to have a strong physical presence on campus. “If they are here, our campus is all they have,” she said. “They don't have another community, they don’t have their family to go back to, they don’t have their friends to go back to. They only have us. That’s why we need to show up and be here for them.” Now representing 10% of the student population and growing, it's a group that's increasingly defining the identity of ��-Dearborn.

###

Story by Lou Blouin

International Affairs

Off

Wed, 01/11/2023 - 19:53

The university welcomed its biggest class of international students in 2022-23. What’s behind the surge — and is it a sign of things to come?

Following a huge post-pandemic bounce in enrollment, international students now represent one in 10 students at ��-Dearborn. Photo courtesy Office of International Affairs

Students gain appreciation for Spanish peninsular culture and history through food in one ��-Dearborn course

rudmehta — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 22:20:36 +0000

Students gain appreciation for Spanish peninsular culture and history through food in one ��-Dearborn course rudmehta Sat, 11/05/2022 - 18:20

Speaking over the blender, Spanish Professor Jorge González del Pozo said gazpacho was created to both nourish and cool Spanish field workers who toiled in the summer heat.

Students watched as he blended the tomatoes, garlic and cucumbers until everything was taken over by the tomatoes’ red hue. He drizzled olive oil into the soup mixture and stirred until it had a smooth, creamy consistency. The smell of garlic and fresh veggies floated in the air. And, after the gazpacho chilled, each student had a bowl.

It looked like a Food Network cooking show. But to students in the SPN 321: Spanish Food and Cuisine course, it was just week six.

“Jorge takes the learning experience to another level. And the way he teaches, what we learn just sticks,” said Jamie Tocco, a junior majoring in international studies. “I haven’t been to Spain, but I’d really like to go one day. Since many of us aren’t in the position to travel, Jorge brings Spain to us through his teaching.”

Created by González del Pozo, the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters course provides students with an overview of Spanish peninsular culture, civilization and history through the analysis of foods, products, dishes and social events around its eating habits.

“Spanish food culture represents an important culinary pillar for many current gastronomical conceptions. Spain has a vast and solid culinary tradition, a diverse and well-positioned present balancing old habits and avant-garde trends, and also a bright future ahead,” said González del Pozo, who is also the Language, Culture and Communication chairman and director of International Studies & Global Cultures. “This course gives students an opportunity to learn and experience Spanish food and cuisine, improve their linguistic competence and become more culturally aware.”

In class, students sampled foods like escalivada, a Spanish roasted vegetable dish, and paella, a Valencian rice dish, and watched films like Cocinando un Tributo and Campo a través.

González del Pozo said cooking demonstrations and food sampling are a must in a cuisine-focused course. But the films are essential, too, because they give cultural insight.

For example, Cocinando un Tributo — a 2015 film about a famous restaurant taking their kitchen crew on a road trip to learn more about Spanish local cuisine — showed that Colombian food has African influence, which is connected to the large population of African descent in the country; Peruvian food is influenced by the Japanese, who moved there centuries ago.

“The hybrid composition and multicultural condition of Spanish cuisine has been influenced and it is influential to other cultures,” he said. “It is very important to recognize this.”

To have students best understand Spanish food and its origins, the course’s final project was a research paper about a region, a local recipe and a filmed presentation on both — produced by journalism and screen studies students — in the CASL JASS Studio. Collaboration with JASS faculty Jim Gilmore and Jennifer Proctor, JASS students and senior television engineer Greg Taylor made the final presentation possible, González del Pozo said.

While JASS students filmed, Rosa Gonzalez gave a cooking show-style presentation, tipping a large red pot so the studio audience — and the viewers watching the CASL televisions in the atrium — could see the finished product.

Gonzalez focused on the Dehesas for her research paper, a cultural landscape of southern and central Spain that is uniquely thriving with a man-made ecosystem that now sustains itself. On the land, pigs are raised. So her recipe was guiso de cerdo, a pork-based stew.

“It is very good. It has potatoes, pork, garlic, tomatoes, vegetables and seasoning,” she said. “But I need to be honest. When I first made it, I had a special ingredient: advice from the best cook I know — my mom.”

After students finished filming, they — both the JASS students and the SPN 321 class — gathered to share a potluck meal. They sampled each other’s food and discussed their dishes.

“Spanish food is a celebration of the senses,” González del Pozo said. “And this is really what it is all about — gathering together to enjoy the food and each other’s company.”

Experiential Learning

International

College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters

Language, Culture, and the Arts

Off

Mon, 12/03/2018 - 06:00

SPN 321 creates a tasty dish that mixes education, collaboration and appreciation.

Students in this semester’s Spanish Food and Cuisine course, including Rosa Gonzalez (above), researched a Spanish-speaking region and a recipe from that region before filming a cooking show-style presentation on both

This student organization makes studying in the U.S. a whole lot easier for ��-Dearborn’s Indian students

rudmehta — Thu, 29 Sep 2022 19:30:57 +0000

This student organization makes studying in the U.S. a whole lot easier for ��-Dearborn’s Indian students rudmehta Thu, 09/29/2022 - 15:30

This article was originally published on February 1, 2019.

Back in the fall of 2015, incoming ��-Dearborn master’s student Aniket Jadhav took a minute to call a few friends who were, like him, just arriving at their various American universities from India. He found many of them drowning in the typical stressors. Some were staying in hotels, burning through savings and struggling to find apartments. Others were surviving on snacks they brought from home (and quickly eating through the supply). And they were all hoping to find somebody — anybody — at the university who could help show them the ropes.

Jadhav, on the other hand, was completely relaxed, kicking back in an apartment of a prearranged host who was putting him up for free. In just his first few days, he’d already scored a phone, a bank account, met a bunch of people in his academic department, and signed a lease for a permanent apartment, which he could move into in a week or so. The following week, he and the other newly arrived Indian graduate students even had plans to head to IKEA — on a bus that had already been arranged for them.

So what explains Jadhav’s soft landing in the U.S.? Well, shortly after he applied to ��-Dearborn, he discovered the university also had a student organization that would have his back even before he got here. Part welcome party, part informal social service agency, the Indian Graduate Student Association was there to help him out with everything from answering questions about visas, to a ride from the airport once he got here, to tips for navigating the American university system (which is a lot different than India’s).

“They were helping me answer questions I didn't even know I had,” Jadhav explained. Roommates, for example: He hadn’t even thought about those. IGSA quickly hooked him up with two who had compatible hobbies and food preferences.

Jadhav said the group’s list of “services” has gotten so big, in part, because it’s an IGSA tradition for each class of students to add something new to the mix. Some things, like mixer parties and cultural celebrations, have always been key activities. But shortly after the group formed in 2003, some early members noticed that transportation to and from campus was difficult for newcomers. So the more senior students who had cars started arranging pick ups for the “freshers.” A few years later, as the Indian student population grew, they started helping students find roommates and housing, primarily in a couple private apartment complexes close to campus that had shuttle service. Then they added a couple Zipcars for easy off-campus trips. Eventually, almost anything you could think of was covered.

Jadhav said one of his 2015 class’ contribution was organizing all the expertise the IGSA has developed over the years into a sort of handbook for incoming students.

“We have all kinds of things in there,” Jadhav explained. “Like what spices you’ll need to bring from India because they’re either hard to find here or a lot more expensive. Or people are usually really curious about the winter. We tell them it’s better to just get winter clothes here. It will save you a lot of room in your suitcase, and the winter clothes you can buy in India are definitely not adequate for a Michigan winter.”

IGSA’s Sanket Joshi and Aniket Jadhav

With many of the life basics now covered, subsequent classes have started to tackle new terrority. For example, Sanket Joshi, who is currently taking his turn as IGSA president, said his 2017 group is building a network that connects incoming students not only with current ��-Dearborn students, but alumni.

“We get a lot of questions about jobs, or what fields or industries might be growing,” Joshi said. “We can help a little with that. But we have so many IGSA alumni out there working now, and they know the most about whether a field is really surging or about to disappear. So that can really help inform people’s choices about what to study.”

One other cool thing about this whole operation: The IGSA is powered completely on a pay-it-forward ethos. Everything is completely free for the incoming students, with existing students personally donating their time, gas money, couches or whatever it takes to get people settled.

“One of the first questions I had when I got here was, ‘Why are you helping us?’” Jadhav said, smiling. “I mean, nobody has to do this, right? People are busy. You could just let everybody figure all this out on their own. Why does anyone care?”

He said the answer he got back was always the same: “We are just giving back what we got.”

Campus Life

International

Off

Fri, 02/01/2019 - 06:00

Studying internationally can be a logistical mess — unless you have the Indian Graduate Student Association on your side.

Cultural events, like mixer parties and the Indian New Year celebration, have been part of the Indian Graduate Student Association mix of activities since the beginning.

International

‘������-Dearborn is a respected institution . . . I feel very lucky to study here’

‘Students from around the world thrive here’

The (solar) power of teamwork

‘You see how integrated we are globally’

Puerto Rico

Padua, Italy

"An experience that I'll never forget'

Gdańsk, Poland

Ottawa, Canada

Thank you, ������-Dearborn!

An international initiative in a College of Business classroom provided knowledge, experiential learning in entrepreneurship

What’s driving the international student boom at ������-Dearborn?

International student enrollment by country

International student enrollment by college

Students gain appreciation for Spanish peninsular culture and history through food in one ������-Dearborn course

This student organization makes studying in the U.S. a whole lot easier for ������-Dearborn’s Indian students

‘��-Dearborn is a respected institution . . . I feel very lucky to study here’

Thank you, ��-Dearborn!

What’s driving the international student boom at ��-Dearborn?

Students gain appreciation for Spanish peninsular culture and history through food in one ��-Dearborn course

This student organization makes studying in the U.S. a whole lot easier for ��-Dearborn’s Indian students