Many students are full of longing and longing for studying abroad before going abroad, dreaming of the infinite beauty of overseas life. After the dream of studying abroad was realized, it was found that there was a big gap between the dream and the reality, and it could not adapt to the life abroad, resulting in the phenomenon of "acclimatization". Jane doe prepared for studying abroad for seven years, but after studying abroad for seven days, she returned home crying. The reason is that after going overseas, I can't adapt to the daily diet overseas at all, and I only eat instant noodles brought from China every day. After eating instant noodles, I still couldn't accept foreign food, felt unwell and was forced to return to China. In fact, this is a problem that many international students will encounter when they first arrive overseas. Some students may envy eating western food when they are in China, but when they are abroad, they have to live on western food every day, so they can't adapt.
Even McDonald's and KFC, which love to eat in China, will feel tasteless after eating for a while and begin to miss domestic food and home cooking. If you live in a host family, you can communicate with the parents of the host family and express your thoughts. If you happen to be able to cook, you can cook with your host family. In this way, you can not only eat delicious food, but also increase your feelings with your host family and quickly integrate into local life. If you rent a house in a school apartment or outside, you can also try to cook some meals yourself. Cooking materials and seasonings are very easy to buy in Chinatown or some supermarkets in the United States. If you are good at cooking, you can also invite foreign classmates and friends to share your skills. I believe this will help you make some good friends.
2. The learning style should be changed.
China students' diligence and assiduousness in their studies can be said to be universally recognized. Many domestic students are used to the exam-oriented education in China, but they are at a loss about the way of free discussion in foreign classrooms. Therefore, some foreign media commented on some international students in China: "Silence in class, holding a group after class, and many learning problems." China students are very silent and quiet in class, even some foreign university professors are uncomfortable and don't know how to adjust their teaching methods. Since you have chosen to study abroad, you should learn to change your class habits in China and try to adjust yourself to the foreign education model. Foreign classrooms attach great importance to cultivating students' creative thinking and practical ability. Therefore, it is very beneficial to actively interact with professors and classmates in class and bravely express their views and opinions on the problem for quickly adapting to foreign education. In addition, often participating in school or social practice activities after study is also an effective way to expand the local circle of friends and quickly integrate into the overseas environment.
Make a time management plan
Different from China's education system, foreign universities place more emphasis on the ability of self-study. Generally, foreign college students need to spend at least twice the classroom time for self-study after class. However, studying and living abroad is not just study, but also extracurricular activities, social activities, travel, daily chores and so on. How to arrange the time reasonably is the first challenge for students in China. Studying abroad reminds everyone that we must make a good plan, prioritize according to the syllabus given by the professor in the first week of school, and plan our monthly, weekly and daily trips. Because the syllabus will not only include the teacher's weekly teaching content and quiz arrangement, but also include the proportion of grades, which can help students to be more scientific when making a timetable.
4. Contact the China Students and Scholars Association of the school.
Students who are going abroad for the first time may have all kinds of questions, and the information on the Internet may not meet your needs, so you should contact China Students and Scholars Association for help in time. Sororities generally provide pick-up and temporary accommodation services for freshmen. Many schools also have information exchange platforms, including renting houses, second-hand books and making friends. Please contact the relevant responsible students for information. At the same time, fraternity organizations in all schools keep close contact with embassies and consulates in China and provide temporary protection and help when necessary.
5. Learn more and communicate with others.
Students studying abroad are often getting younger and younger, and their safety awareness is weak. Their self-care ability and self-reliance ability are relatively poor, and their ability to communicate with others and adapt to society is also relatively low, which directly leads to students not knowing how to deal with problems or disputes and contradictions with others abroad. Therefore, it is best for students to consciously learn how to communicate with others before going abroad to improve their ability to adapt to foreign life and solve problems.
6. Understand the daily life and cultural differences between China and foreign countries.
For international students, apart from the change and adjustment of learning methods, the biggest challenge they face is to adapt to the new environment and cultural differences between China and foreign countries. It is necessary to know more about the daily life and cultural differences between China and foreign countries if you want to integrate into the local area as soon as possible. When interacting with local people, it is best to know more about local cultural traditions and some daily taboos. Many foreign students often find a very realistic problem when they go abroad. Their English level in China is quite good, and both IELTS and TOEFL have got amazing high scores. However, when they communicate with local people, they find that the words and expressions they have learned in books are sometimes useless. Moreover, many people have accents or dialects of their respective countries or regions, and there will be some obstacles in communication. It is suggested that when communicating with local people, try to learn local language expressions. I would like to remind you that some foreign students think that foreign countries are very free because they don't understand foreign society and culture, and they can say whatever they want, and even bring some bad habits developed in China. For example, some students feel that they are familiar with foreign students after getting along with them for a period of time, and they begin to make some unscrupulous jokes. As everyone knows, foreign "freedom" is relative. Although everyone in the west is more open and free, they also have their own life and cultural taboos, such as personal privacy and beliefs.
7. Understand the local public security and medical conditions.
Before studying abroad, you should know all kinds of safety knowledge through various channels and take the initiative to ask the school for relevant safety information, manuals and emergency contact numbers to prevent problems before they happen. When you arrive in the United States, you should know the security situation there as soon as possible. Once the residence is determined, it is necessary to ask the local residents about the surrounding environment and pay attention to whether there are safety measures, such as building alarms and roadside free call for help. When you arrive at school, you should know the specific locations of emergency alarm organs, emergency rooms and medical stations to avoid panic in an emergency.
8. Cultivate critical thinking
Different from China's education based on knowledge and memory, the western education system focuses on cultivating students' independent thinking ability. In foreign universities, critical discussion of reading materials in discussion classes and argumentation and evaluation of various evidences in writing papers all require critical thinking. Critical thinking is a skill that foreign college students must master, which is not only of great help to their studies, but also affects their future work. Similarly, bosses will appreciate employees who come to conclusions after market research, data and evidence analysis more than employees who come to conclusions directly.
9. Comply with local regulations and laws.
In China, people are used to running red lights when crossing the street, disobeying traffic rules, making loud noises or smoking in public. In foreign countries, these bad habits are absolutely not allowed. In China, it is common for pedestrians and cars to grab roads. In foreign countries, when driving, we should respect pedestrians and let them cross the road first. When pedestrians pass smoothly, the car will move forward carefully. In addition, in order to drive safely, especially when the ground is slippery on rainy days, drive more carefully. When studying abroad, you should not only understand the differences between Chinese and foreign cultures and life, but also learn more legal knowledge to avoid unintentionally breaking the laws of that country.
10. Skills to overcome language difficulties
Even China students with high language scores will still face great challenges in listening, speaking, reading and writing in foreign universities. Take reading as an example. Most western courses are discussion classes. Professors like to arrange a lot of reading before each class, which is very stressful for local students, not to mention China students whose English is not their mother tongue and their reading speed is slow. But reading before class is the basis of participating in class discussion, and discussion is the time for professors to help students understand and expand their thinking. If you don't study before class, it is difficult for students to participate in the discussion, and the degree of participation in general discussion will become part of your grade. If you don't speak in the discussion class, your grades will definitely not be high.