With over 5000 currently enrolled at UW and increasing each year, international students are a continually growing presence on campus. Hailing from over 120 countries, their presence offers much potential for unique interactions, broad cultural exposure and lifelong friendships – both for the American students and the international students, regardless of whether or not they decide to settle down in the United States upon graduation.

Of course, that’s in the ideal case. However, as too often happens, reality falls short of one’s expectations. From what I have observed in my so far brief stint at UW, most international students only associate with others from the same country, or at most fellow international students. While there are undoubtedly a number of students for whom this is not the case, the trend still applies for the majority.

As an international student myself, I can definitely understand their reasons. The most significant obstacle that many international students face in integrating with the local student population is, as would be expected, the language barrier. This is especially true for new students. Having to speak a language they have not used much in their day-to-day lives, they are prone to mispronunciations, ungainly word choices and misunderstandings that can lead to awkward conversations with Americans.

Another problem that affects most international students is the cultural differences that exist between the American way of life and the students’ countries of origin. From minor points like greetings to significant issues such as competitiveness in academics, these differences can lead to discomfort, or even sometimes conflict.

Is the lack of interactions between international and local students a problem, and if so, is there anything that can be done about it? Does the disconnect result from reluctance on the part of the international students, or is it the American students who do not accept international students into their lives as they do other American students?

The school, through UW’s dedicated International Student Services (ISS), has certainly made much effort to assist international students. They actively organize programs and events that allow international students to interact with Americans and immerse them in American culture. These programs range from the weekly held Conversational English tutoring, to the Building Relationships in Diverse Global Environments (BRIDGE) program that offers interactions with locals. In addition, programs at the Center for Cultural Enrichment (CCE) and Memorial Union offer international students a multitude of opportunities to learn about language and culture.

Nevertheless, while these programs are certainly useful in helping bridge linguistic and cultural differences, there is only so much the university can do. While they can educate international students and enrich their knowledge of American culture, there is no better way to do so than to simply jump in and mingle with American students. In contrast to what some international students may think at first, most American students welcome making friends with international students, even if they are not very fluent, as long as they are willing to engage in conversation. What holds back most international students is often the fear of making mistakes, which leads them to not even attempt to speak English beyond what is necessary for academics.

Lack of communication, besides being a barrier to international students integrating into the campus culture, can bring about negative experiences. Some of the horror stories told by American students about their obnoxious or obstinate ‘foreign’ roommates in the dorms might not have been told if there was more interaction between roommates to resolve misunderstandings and allow compromise. It is the reluctance to communicate, more than language skills, that isolates some international students from their American schoolmates.

Cultural differences, on the other hand, are more difficult to overcome. Besides slowly adjusting to the different lifestyle and practices, there is not much that an international student can do to mitigate the culture shock. Moreover, cultural values, being part of a person’s identity, are usually better not pressured upon. Still, cultural differences are not always undesirable; often, they can come across as interesting, or even, in my experience, downright hilarious – Americans dip their sausages in maple syrup and glaze their pork chops with chocolate!

The opportunity for interaction and friendship between American students and international students studying in a great public institution such as UW-Madison offers is truly a privilege. However, for that to be more than mere talk, more international students need to break out of their comfort zones and associate with other students by putting aside their aversion to awkwardness and realizing that fostering lifelong friendships with American students is a valuable opportunity not worth missing.

So, if any of you international students are reading this, I encourage you to care less about making mistakes and care more about speaking more English with your American schoolmates. It may be weird and uncomfortable at first, but I promise it’s worth every effort you put in. And just like the sausage and syrup and the chocolate pork chop, you’ll never know what it’s like – unless you try.

Albert Budhipramono ([email protected]) is a freshman majoring in biology.