Sure, being a postsecondary student has its difficulties. But just imagine how difficult it can be to be in foreign land as a postsecondary student. Camosun College currently has over 600 international students from over 45 countries with numbers continuing to rise. And as those students know, it’s not always easy transitioning to life in Canada.
Just ask Bianca Walter, who came over from Germany to study at the college. Even though Walter has been warmly welcomed here in Victoria and at Camosun, there are still some important things that she misses from home. It’s a struggle any international students face once they realize how far away home actually is.
“The thing I miss the most from Germany is the bread and butter we have there,” she says. “The margarine here is salty and not like the butter we have back home. There is a German bakery in Duncan that I love getting bread from, but it’s a journey to get there.”
Walter learned a fair amount of English in Germany but she still sometimes has difficulty understanding her fellow students due to fast talking and slang that she doesn’t understand.
“Sometimes I don’t understand why Canadian people do the things they do or how they do them. I think it must be a cultural thing,” she says. “It’s great, though, because I feel comfortable telling people when I don’t understand them and learn more that way.”
A Deutschlander’s experience
One of the big things that Walter noticed about her new Canadian surroundings was something positive. She saw how nice people were.
“I was amazed at how friendly people are here,” she says. “They smile more, are polite, and even thank the bus driver, which I find really funny. At first I thought it was all superficial, but have soon come to realize that people here are genuinely very nice and caring.”
Walter is very thankful that she went to international students’ orientation day at the college in early September because that’s where she was introduced to most of the friends she spends time with today, as well as Peer Connections. She soon became a volunteer for the program.
To help aid international students during their time in Victoria and at Camosun College, the college provides students with Peer Connections. The program helps international students with living in a new culture, feeling homesick, adjusting to college life, language barriers, frustration, loneliness, and more.
“I’ve learned how to support our fellow peers,” says Walter about the program. “I am consistently being trained on how to help the cultural and emotional transition for my peers, and it feels great to be able to support one another.”
Connecting with peers
Marius Langland has been involved with Peer Connections since he came to Victoria as an international student two years ago. Like Walters, Langland heard about Peer Connections at the international students’ orientation.
“The international orientation is so important for new students to integrate into Camosun College,” he says. “Peer Connections usually has a panel of volunteers who speak about why they came to Camosun College, what some of the challenges are that they have faced, and how they are dealing with their integration.”
From Langland’s first encounter with Peer Connections he knew he wanted to be a part of the program. Langland soon became a student coordinator, along with three other coordinators out of the group’s 35-40 members.
“The language barrier can be huge and cause difficulties for international students at Camosun,” says Langland. “There are six levels of the English Language Development (ELD) class so there are a lot of mixed-level students, which can make it difficult.”
Langland explains that it’s difficult for some international students when they transition from their ELD classes to regular Canadian college classes. He says teachers need to be more aware of what it’s like to be an international student in a Canadian class.
“Instructors can help by encouraging students to participate,” says Langland. “In Canada people are expected to participate and have their own views, and that might not be the same in international students’ mother countries.”
Langland explains that in many countries postsecondary education is teacher-centered, but at Camosun the education is more student-centered.
“Some international students need to step out of their comfort zone because they aren’t home and if we can prepare them for what the education model is like here, then they can have a really enriching experience,” he says.
Langland says that international students face many challenges, like adapting to the language, culture, and food. Simple things that people take for granted can be a huge struggle.
“When some students come to Canada they don’t know they have to pay $2.50 for the bus, can’t get change on the bus, and have no idea what a transfer is,” says Langland. “If you break it down, there is potential for a lot of things to go wrong. At Peer Connections we talk about these things, share stories, give support, and point out other resources.”
The program also has guest speakers come in to help teach about being a better listener, personal boundaries, cultural differences, dealing with culture shock, and more.
“We’ve learned the skills to identify when something is wrong and what clues and signs to look out for,” say Langland. “We are able to deal with cultural sensitivities, and help as much as we can, unless we feel that they need to speak with a counsellor.”
Langland has noticed significant improvement in each batch of international students that get involved with Peer Connections and feels that it’s a great growing experience for the students involved.
“At first when new students get involved with Peer Connections they seem a bit intimidated, or shy, or reserved,” says Langland. “By the end of the semester many subtle changes have happened and they’ve evolved and grown noticeably.”