INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AT SOUTHEAST ADJUSTING TO LIFE IN AMERICA

Tariq Chowdhury of the United Arab Emirates is right at home in the hot weather.

Natacha Berrotta misses her family and friends in Argentina.

Anna Ohlsson of Sweden is fulfilling her dream attending college in the United States.

The three are among about 60 new international students who will be enrolled at Southeast Missouri State University this fall semester. Classes start Monday.

The three students are among about 50 new international students who are already on campus, adjusting to a new culture and taking care of business, which includes everything from opening bank accounts to getting Social Security cards.

In all, about 350 international students will be attending Southeast this fall, said Margaret Popham, coordinator of International Student Services at the university.

For 20-year-old Chowdhury, the hot, humid weather in Southeast Missouri is to his liking. "I didn't want to go into a cold place. I can't bear the cold," he said Tuesday.

Chowdhury has British citizenship. He and his parents lived in Bangladesh at one time. For the past eight years, the family has lived in the United Arab Emirates.

Chowdhury said that after finishing high school, he had little choice but to seek an education abroad because there are few universities in the United Arab Emirates.

He attended classes offered by the Center for American Education in the Persian Gulf nation for one year and decided he wanted to continue his studies at an American school. He will be attending Southeast as a transfer student.

Chowdhury said that male and female students attend separate schools in his country.

"It's an extremely safe place," he said. "People just leave their cars open, their doors open."

For 18-year-old Berrotta, living on campus is a foreign concept. In Argentina "you just commute to the university every day," she explained.

Berrotta is the first student from Argentina to enroll at Southeast. She previously visited the United States as part of a student exchange program.

She said it wasn't easy deciding to go so far away to school. "It was quite a difficult decision," said Berrotta, who is from Buenos Aires. "I didn't know anybody at all." She said she had to take three different flights just to get here.

Berrotta said that she has had to adjust to the summer weather here, which is in sharp contrast to Argentina where it is now winter.

As for Ohlsson, she's looking forward to her first year at Southeast. "It's always been my dream to come to the United States and go to college."

The 19-year-old student loves to play basketball. "I play very much basketball at home," said Ohlsson, adding that she's aware Southeast has good basketball teams.

Ohlsson, who comes from a small town in Sweden, said she was surprised by "the broad streets" in Cape Girardeau.

She said she has noticed that "everyone goes by car here" whereas in Sweden people are used to walking places.

"The food is much more spicy here than I am used to," she said.

Although she has studied English for several years, Ohlsson said it still takes time to adjust to how Americans talk and to pick up the slang.

Popham said that among the international students, Japanese students comprise the largest single nationality. There are about 160 Japanese students at Southeast, Popham said. Malaysian students comprise the second-largest group. About 70 students from that country are enrolled at Southeast.

As to the new international students, Popham said: "We have about 10 from the Netherlands and about 10 from Malaysia." There are also new students enrolled from a number of other countries.

"We have a wider mix of countries than before," she pointed out.

"We had hoped to have a young woman from Yugoslavia," said Popham. But at this point, she said, the woman has been unable to secure a flight out of the strife-torn nation.

Most of the new international students arrived here Saturday, said Popham.

She said the new students will spend this week adjusting to their new environment, enrolling in classes and taking placement exams.

All of them speak English, said Popham, but it's still a difficult adjustment. For most of the students, it is their first visit to the United States.

"The things they are concerned about really are food and lodging," said Popham. "The first problem is getting settled in."

Most of the international students are in the 19-24 age bracket.

She said the university this year is concentrating more on providing time for the new international students to socialize prior to the start of classes. As part of that effort, a soccer game will be held Saturday and on Sunday the students will be treated to an outing at Trail of Tears State Park.

Some international students are enrolled at Southeast through cultural exchange programs. Others find out about Southeast through information being distributed through educational sources overseas, and still others learn of Southeast through word of mouth, Popham said.